OBAN STAR RACERS: THE JOURNEY TO NOURAISIA
by REMEMBEROBAN
Summary: Three years has passed since the great race, what happend after the race? Did everything turn out the way it should be or did something unexpected happen?     MORE CHAPTERS COMMING UP!
1. Chapter 1: A familiar face?

_Three years passed since the Great Race of Oban. Everything went back to normal for everybody. Stan and Koji returned to their work for Miguel and Don Wei went back to his sweet self and the racing team. As for Eva, she returned to school, a different one. Nicer and closer to home, but still a school. When she looked back at the years, she was happy. She got her dad back, almost like winning the ultimate prize after all. Being Molly was fun, but it was good to be Eva again. Still, she missed her old friends a lot. As the day passed, she kept wondering what they were doing and if they still recognized her. Thinking about the races and her friends, made her a bit sad, but someday she knew that she would meet them again._  
><strong><br>CHAPTER 1: _A FAMILIAR FACE?_**

The school bell rang. "Finally a break!", Eva thought. She could finally breathe out, all the reading made her so bored she could die. As she ran through the halls, she noticed that some of her friends were already standing outside waiting for her. "Hey, Eva! We're going out for lunch, do you want to join us?" ,one of her friends shouted. She ran down the stairs straight ahead to them. "Sure! Where are we going?", she asked Alan. "Nah, I was thinking that we could go and eat some burgers at the burger shop as usual", he answered her. Alan was one of Eva's new friends. 

Since the day she changed school, she and Alan got along well almost like brothers and sisters. He had brown eyes, thick eyebrows and was always wearing a red cap to hide his embarrassing haircut. He would never take his cap off; even if that meant that he often was sent to the principal's office. Since his mother took her with him the worst hair salon ever he didn't dare to take it off! Eva on the other hand burst in laughter every time his mother mentioned it when she came for a visit.

As they were walking to the burger shop, Alan noticed that Eva was watching his head all the time. "What are you staring at?", he asked trying to hide his haircut while holding both of his hands on his head.

"You know Alan, your haircut isn't that bad…", Eva said and grinned.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa! I know what you're thinking of. Dream on, Eva. I'm not going to show you my haircut again since you always make fun of it!"

"Hey, it's not my fault that everybody calls you a half-baled baboon all the time!"

"Whatever… Whoa! Look at that line! Oh great! Now we're never gonna get our burgers.", Alan sighed. "Oh well, I guess we can't help it. We just have to get something else to eat, Alan.", Eva suggested. "No way, I'm not gonna move from this line until I get my burger!".

"C'mon, Alan. Don't be stupid! We don't have all day, let's go!", Eva told him, trying to pull him out of the crowd.

Some students in front of them were so impatient; they started to push other students to the side and trying to sneak. "Hey, no sneaking!", said some of the students in the front line. Soon they started a fight causing everybody to ruin the line. They looked like a pack of hungry gorillas trying to eat each other's bananas. Eva knew that this was going to get ugly. She pulled of Alan's caps and ran away from the crowd!

"Hey, wait what…! ARRRGH! EVA! COME BACK WITH MY CAP!", Alan screamed and ran after her. Eva was way ahead of him running like a chaeta. While she was running she looked after some place to hide. Finally she saw an empty café and hid under a table. She watched as Alan passed the table without even noticing her! "Unbelievable! He didn't even stop to look after me! Haha, what an idiot!", she giggled. Eva came up from the table and was about leave when she saw a familiar face on the news. Her eyes widen when she heard the reporter talking.

_"Rick thunderbolt, before a racing legend, now a famous coach for the racing team at The Wei Company! "Tell us, Rick, what does it feel being a coach now?", the news reporter asked him. "To be quite honest, it feels good. After all those years with racing I found out that being a coach was much easier. Using your own experiences to teach young people how to race feels good! Finally I can be the boss for once", Rick said and laughed a bit. "But don't you miss racing at all?", the reporter asked. "Yeah, sure I miss it. But as a coach I can breathe out without worrying about racing all the time. Besides, these kids need me! So if you're out there-", Rick said turning around to the camera. "If you want to fulfill your dreams as a pilot, you know where to find me!"._

Eva couldn't believe it! It was Rick! _"Wow, he's still same old Rick. Maybe he's right, maybe I should come by sometimes and hang out with him just like old times",_ she thought for herself. Suddenly a cold hand shook her shoulder. She turned carefully around and then she saw him. Alan grinned while he tightens his fist. Eva knew that when he grinned it was over! He was about to punch her, when his mother randomly showed up. "Alan, what on earth are you doing? Shouldn't you children be at school by now?", she asked him and tried to fix his haircut. "Mom! Please!", Alan begged. His face was turning red, almost like a tomato. "It's ok, Mrs. Flynn, Alan was just joking. C'mon let's hurry before the bell rings!", Eva took his hand and ran towards the school. "Teenagers these days. When are they going learn?", Mrs. Flynn shook her head.

**Author's note:  
><strong>**  
>Stay tuned for the next chapter guys if you want know more!Reviwe if you wish! Would be nice to see what I can do better next time! <strong>


	2. Chapter 2: Surprise!

**CHAPTER 2**  
>Another day of school passed. Finally the students got a long and good vacation. They were heading home from school when the last bell rang. Eva stood outside waiting for her father to pick her up. Even though she didn't live far from school, she liked being picked up by her dad. She turned around; she could hear her dad's car only meters away. "Dad!", she ran down the stairs to the car. "Ready to go?", Don asked as she was making her way down the stairs. Eva ran to the other side of the car and jumped in. As they were driving Don asked her: "So, how was your day?".<p>

"Nah… nothing special. Except that I almost got beaten today!"

"What? By who?"

"Allan. But don't worry dad, he's was just being stupid"

"I will have a little talk with this young man later…"

"DAD! It's ok, you don't have to. You know I can protect myself. Besides he's NOT that strong!", Eva laughed.

"Oh, alright. Whatever you say, darling.", Don told her and just smiled.

When they came home Eva rushed to the living room and turned on the TV. She struggled to find the News channel. Don thought it was a bit weird, normally his daughter only watched races when she switched on the TV. Once he came in and took of his shoes he sat down on the couch next to Eva. "Dad, you're smart! I can't find the News channel! Help me!", she said handing him the remote control. Don only shook his head and switched the channels. When they finally found the News channel Don asked her: "Don't you want to watch the races instead?".

"No? I want to watch the news this time!"

"Oh? Why is that?"

"Haven't you heard dad? Rick is back! He's working as a coach now at the company!"

Don's eyes widen. "Really, he's back? Wow, I didn't know! Since when?"

"I don't know either. He said earlier today on the news that we could find him at the building! I'm sure he's there! Can't we go and visit him tomorrow, dad? We have a long vacation now, please!"

"Well… I suppose we could stop by and talk for a bit. Why not?"

"Really? Yes! Thanks, Dad!", Eva turned to the side and hugged him. He couldn't help just sitting there and smile. Nothing made him happier than seeing his daughter happy.

The next day, Don waked up early as usual making his morning coffee. Without coffee he looked like a retarded baboon! Don poured some coffee in his favorite cup. He got a yellow goldfish cup from Eva last year for his birthday. Since then he'd always drink anything with it! He took a sip of his cup and made his way to Eva's room to wake her up. Eva was still sleepy. Like any other teenager, she liked to sleep longer when she had free from school. She was sleeping peacefully when she suddenly felt like there was an earthquake shaking her from the inside! When she opened her eyes she could with relief see that it was just her dad trying to wake her up! "Go away…", she said as she turned around to the other side of her bed. "Rise and shine, young lady! We have a lot to do today!", he said while whistling out of her room. Eva didn't have much of a choice. She woke up and got dressed. Then she walked over to the kitchen and grabbed a bowl of cereal. "Eat quickly! I've got a lot of work to do today too! If you want to meet Rick, you have to hurry!", Don reminded her, Eva ate as fast as she could, almost like a torpedo. "I'm done! Let's go!".

She jumped in the car and couldn't sit still as they were driving to the Wei building. When they finally were there, Eva rushed out of the car and ran up the stairs towards the main doors. Before they went in Don reminded her to be nice and calm to everybody. Eva nodded without even catching a word her dad said only focusing on meeting Rick. They were about to go to the reception at the front desk when they suddenly crashed in something blue! "Ouch! Watch where you're going, you-", the thing said. Then it gasped and began to apologize: "Oh no! Mr. Wei! Ups! Sorry, I didn't see you there!". Don got back on his feet's and helped Eva up. "Ugh, what was that?", Eva asked.

"What on earth are you doing, Alice?", Don yelled angrily.

"Sorry, boss! I didn't see you! I couldn't see through this much paper!", the woman apologized again and began picking up the papers on the floor.

"Dad! You don't have to be so rude! It was just an accident!"

"Well, she has a point there, Mr. Wei!", the woman smiled at her. "Hi, I'm Alice! I believe that you are Don Wei's daughter?".

"Yep! That's me, alright! I'm Eva."

"Nice to meet you Eva!"

"Well since both of you get along, please have me excused.", Don said and started walking towards an elevator.

"Ok! See you later Dad!", Eva waved bye to her dad and then turned back to Alice.

"So what brings you here, Eva?", Alice asked her.

"I thought I'd stop by to hang out with an old friend of mine! He works here."

"He does? What's his name?"

"Rick! Do you know him?"

Alice's eyes suddenly became bigger and a slight blush appeared on her face. "Yes, he's also a good… friend of mine…".

"That's great! You can show me where he works then! C'mon let's go!", Eva grabbed her arm and began walking to the elevator. She pushed the bottom to the _"training-room"_ and the elevator made its way down. When the doors opened, Eva and Alice walked out to find Rick. She found him right away; it was easy to recognize his long black hair, and dark sunglasses. "RICK! RICK! RICK!", Eva screamed. He turned around and saw her running towards him. She gave him a big bear-hug. "Hey, little mouse! What a surprise! What are you doing here?", he asked her and stroke her head.

"Rick! It's so nice to see you again! I can't believe it's you!"

"Well, it's still me. Same old Rick. Why don't we sit down for a bit?", he suggested.

"Yeah! I have so much to tell you!", she said and couldn't almost hold all her exciting back! She was like a balloon, almost exploding! They walked to a bench and sat down relaxing.

"How did you find me?"

"I saw you in the news yesterday!"

"Oh, yeah! That one… well, that explains everything I guess", he laughed. "but who took you here?"

"Dad did. And then I bumped on Alice. She said she knew you and that you were working here. Do you know her?"

"Well, yeah… kind of…"

"Rick. Is there something you want to tell me?", she asked and smirked.

"Oh, alright! I admit it. She's my girlfriend!"

"Really? Since when? How did you guys met? Why do like about her! Tell me everything!", Eva kept asking and asking questions until Rick put his hand on her mouth.

"Wow, wow, wow… slow down little mouse… that's another story, but since you're so excited to know so much I can tell you who I meet last week. Guess who?", Rick said and grinned. 


	3. Chapter 3: The invitation

**CHAPTER 3**

Eva raised an eye brow and knew that Rick had something on his mind. "Did you meet Rush? Have you heard anything from him lately?", she asked ignoring his question.

"Yeah, sure. I heard he returned to Byros now that the planet has been rebuilt, but guess who I met last week!"

"Did you meet Stan and Koji?"

"Noop!"

"Then who did you meet then?", she said and started to get irritated.

"I think you know who, Eva. If I say the word _"prince"_, who do you think of then?"

_"Hmm… do I know any pri-!"_, she thought... suddenly her eyes widened and then she realized that she forgot him! _"Oh no! I must be the worst friend ever! How could I forget him?". _"Little mouse? Hello?", Rick waved his hand in front her eyes. "Aikka!", she suddenly shouted scaring him!

"Well, that took time…"

"You met Aikka didn't you?"

"Yes! Correct! That's right!", he teased her.

"But how? Since when? Did you talk to him directly? Did he say anything special?"

"Well… after I walked Alice home from our date I suddenly got a message on my phone saying that I had to go home and check my intergalactic-communicator. I thought it was kind of weird since I'd never really use it so much. But when I came home I turned it on and then I saw Aikka's hologram over the communicator."

"What did he say?"

"First he just greeted me and asked how I was doing and stuff like that. Then he said something about an invitation… I don't remember what it was about…"

Eva was just about to ask him something when she heard her dad calling her. "Eva! C'mon let's go! I'm done now.", he shouted. _"Aww, dad! Of course when something good happens he always ruin it…",_ she thought for herself. She got up and began to walk towards him, then turned to Rick and said: "Rick, I'm coming here tomorrow too! Please check on that invitation later! I want to know what it is!". Rick nodded and waved bye to her.

When they came home Eva went straight to her room grabbing her diary under her bed and began writing. _"I wonder what the invitation was about… why did Aikka suddenly call without letter me know first?"_, she thought while drawing Aikka's face in her diary. She laughed at the drawing since it looked kind of ugly. "Hahaha, I know. I'm bad at drawing, but I think he looks just like Aikka. Kind of cute…", she giggled. "Eva! Dinner is served! Come and get it before I eat it!", her dad shouted from the kitchen. "Oh no you won't!". She closed her diary and walked to the kitchen. A few hours later it was time to sleep. She crawled up in her bed rolling under the sheets. After counting sheep's for more than two hours she still couldn't sleep. All that thinking of that invitation made her too excited, but sooner or later she knew that she had to sleep. Slowly she closed her eyes and fell asleep.

The sun shone bright trough her window and blinded her as she slowly tried to open her eyes. It felt like someone was grilling her eyes on a grill. When she finally woke up, she got dressed and ran out to the kitchen for breakfast. This time she was the one who woke up early for once. After breakfast she knocked on her dad's door and shook his whole body, but he didn't even react. "DAD! THE HOUSE IS ON FIRE!", she screamed in his ear. "HUH? WHERE WHAT WHY WHO?", he screamed of shock! "Morning dad!". Don turned his head slowly against her. "Eva! What were you thinking? I almost got a heart attack!", he said holding one hand on his heart. "I'm off to see Rick, bye!", she said and rushed out of the room.

Eva opened the garage and hopped on her little scooter, put her goggles on and made her way to Rick. While she was driving she also got time to watch the open landscape with the flowers, trees, animals and even the small farms that was located near her house. She watched as the sun was rising up behind the hills. Driving like crazy she almost crashed into a person, but luckily stopped only meters away. "Are you nuts! Watch where you're going!", she yelled at the boy. "Talk about yourself! I saw you only a few meters away driving like there was no tomorrow!". Eva took off her goggles and was about to hit him when she recognized his face. "Alan?".

Eva?"

"What are you doing here?"

"I was bored so I thought I could come and visit you… but it looks like you have other plans? Where are you going anyway?"

"Can't tell you! It's secret! Got to go bye!", she put her goggles on and flew away. Alan only shook his head. Meanwhile in the training-room, Rick waited for her. "Rick, sweetheart. Don't you want to get some coffee with me?", Alice asked him. Rick shook his head. "She'll be here any minute...but I'll catch you up later!". He watched as his gorgeous girlfriend walked away. Then he started smiling, thinking how lucky he was to have her. Suddenly cold hands was blocking his view! "Guess who!", said a voice behind him. "Very funny, little mouse… I know it's you.", he smiled and took off her hands.

"How did you know it was me?"

"Dont'cha think I recognize your voice anywhere? But anyway, I'm kinda hungry, do you want to get something to eat first? You look like you haven't eaten a thing this morning."

"Yeah sure!"

He stood up and they walked out of the building towards the town. Eva showed him the famous burger shop all of the students at her school went to. When they got there she ordered a gigantic burger with crispy fries! "Thanks, Joe!", she smiled to the man behind the glass. "Anytime, Eva!", he smiled back. Rick raised a brow when Eva handed over the burger. "C'mon Rick! You can't say no before you taste it! I promise, you're not gonna die if you eat it", Eva grinned. He smirked and took a big bite. They sat down on a park bench near the shop. Eva looked at her shoes and tried to figure out how she could ask about the invitation. "Done!". She turned around to the side and saw that he was done eating. "Did it taste good?". Rick nodded and aimed for the trashcan throwing the paper perfectly in. "So…", she started.

"What did he say?"

"Who?"

"What do you mean who? I'm talking about Aikka!", her heart skip a beat.

"oooh! You're talking about the invitation, right?"

"Yes…"

"Well…he said something about an invitation to his kingdom. He wanted you to come for a visit… what do you think about that?". Eva blushed at the thoughts of Aikka wanting her to visit him.

"I'll take that as a no?"

"Wait, what? No! I mean yes! No, I mean…"

"Do you want to visit him or not?"

"Of course I do! But… I don't know how to get there and I haven't even asked my dad yet… and what if he…"

"Take it easy little mouse, I know who can get you there, but first you have to talk to your dad."

Eva nodded. She knew that was important too. "You can't just run away with prince charming without telling your pap where you're going, you know!", Rick teased her. "Hey! Mind your own business!", she said blowing up her cheeks. "Well, you know what? Since you bought me a burger I thought we could go get some ice cream,! It's my treat", he said messed with her hair. Eva smiled and looked up to the sky. _"See you soon, my prince!",_ she thought. 


	4. Chapter 4: We're going to Nouraisia!

**CHAPTER 4**

Meanwhile in a kingdom far, far away… east for the sun and west for the moon lied the beautiful kingdom of Nouraisia. In the heart of the holy city Dohl, lied the great palace where the young prince lived. Since his return from the Great Race of Oban, the kingdom lived under peace and harmony, now that the crogs had lost the war. For the people of Nouraisa the prince was a hero! Even the king and the queen were pleased with the victory! But even though he felt happy for his kingdom, he still felt like there was something missing. Every night since the race he'd look up to the stars trough his window thinking of her. His earth princess. His mother, the queen, was the only one who could understand him. She knew how much he missed her, but never spoke of it. The fear of making him lose his focus on the kingdoms future was far too big than how she'd loved to make him happy. The young prince also knew his duties to the kingdom and never lost the focus on its future, but one day he had to keep his promise to Eva.

"Very good, my prince! We are done for today, you can go and rest for now."

"Thank you, Canaan. I look forward to the training tomorrow", the prince bowed to his fencing master, left the training room and made his way to his room. As he was walking through the halls of the palace, he found his mother staring at the stars through one of the windows. "Mother?". She turned around and made a sign telling him to come closer. "Look at the sky, my son. What do you see?", she asked him.

"I can see the stars…"

"That is right. But look closer, what do you _really_ see?"

He leaned closer to the window and tried to understand what his mother meant. But he couldn't figure it out. "I don't understand, mother. What do you mean?".

"I noticed that you have been watching the stars a lot lately. Actually since the day you returned home from the race. Is there something you want to tell me, Aikka?"

"I…"

"Yes? You know you can trust me. You can tell me anything, Aikka.", his mother said and stroke his back. Aikka didn't know how to tell his mother about his feelings. Maybe she wouldn't understand. He was so unsure, even though it was his mother.

"Were you thinking of that earth girl perhaps?"

He's eyes widened and his cheeks burned when he heard his mother asking him about her! "H, how did you know…?", he asked her. "I have always known, Aikka. Since the day you came home you told me and your father a lot about this earth girl.", she smiled. Aikka blushed only thinking about how embarrassing this was.

"You have nothing to ashamed of, my son. I was once a young girl too. When there was someone I missed, I did not tell anyone about it. I kept it inside me causing me more pain!"

The queen really understood Aikka's feeling! She had never been so open and understanding like this before! "I wish to see her again. I promised that I would show her my kingdom.".

"Then why are you still waiting for the time to fur fill your promise? Are we not know for keeping our promises?"

"You're certainly right, mother! I shall call her by the break of the dawn."

"As you wish. You have my permission to do so. Until then, rest my son. We have a lot to do tomorrow. Good night.", she said and walked away.

_"Thank you, mother. Good night. And good night to you too, my earth princess. We will see each other again very soon. I promise.", _he thought looking out at the stars.

And so he did. He called her friend Rick. He knew that he was a very dear friend of her. When he called, Rick was surprised to see him. Aikka gave him an invitation to his kingdom and of course he wanted Eva to know it too as well. She could take who ever she wanted with her. She was welcome to his kingdom and he would wait for her to answer before making any preparations for her arrival.

Back on earth Eva couldn't wait to tell her dad about the invitation. She had to figure out a way to convince him since she knew that he was a bit hardheaded. While she waited for him to come home she read a book about the, about the culture, the food, flowers etc. After an hour later she fell asleep on the couch. When her dad came home he wondered why she was sleeping there and carried her to her bed and tucked her inn. He sat beside her and watched her sleeping peacefully. "Good night, Eva", he whispered in her ear. Then he closed her door and picked up the book lying down on the floor. He put the book back on the shelf without even bothering to look at what she was reading.

"Mmm… how long have I been sleeping?". Eva stretched her arm and yawned. Then she realized that she wasn't on the couch anymore. She shook her head and got dressed.

"Morning, Dad!".

"Good morning. Did you sleep well?"

"Yeah… but how did I end up sleeping in my room?"

"I saw you sleeping on the couch, but I carried you to your room so you could sleep better. What were you doing last night since you fell asleep?"

"I was… eh… reading" 

"That's why there was a book on the floor?"

"Yeah… I was reading while I waited for you."

"Why did you wait for me?"

"I wanted to ask you something…I have a frie-", she started.

"Yes?"

Eva stared at her father leaving an awkward silence. _"Come on Eva! You have to tell him about Aikka! It's now or never!",_ a voice inside her said.

"I got an invitation from a friend you see…"

"What is this invitation about?"

"Uhm… he kinda wants me to come visit him, but the problem is that he kinda lives far away…"

"Who is this friend?"

"It's Aikka… he wants me to come visit his kingdom". Her heart skipped a beat and couldn't stop herself from blushing. Don on the other hand was slightly surprised. He knew who Aikka was, but then again he couldn't believe what he just heard.

"So… what do you think?"

"Why should… you go?"

"First of all, Aikka called Rick and told him about the invitation. Second, Rick also got invited to Nouraisia as well as I got invited in the first place. And I'd loved to go, but the thing is I have to hear what you think first…"

"I,I don't know what to say…"

"Please Daddy? Please! I promise nothing bad will happen and besides I'm 18 now! You know I can take care of myself! I can take Rick and Stan and Koji with me if that's what you want. But please?"

"I don't know…"

"Don't you trust me?"

"Of course I do! But I'm kind of afraid to lose you again."

"But Dad! At least consider it! Besides we have a long vacation now and I don't want to spend it sitting home all day!"

"I know, I know… it's just that I don't trust _that_ boy…"

"Dad! Aikka promised to take care of me! If anything happens I'll let you know. What do you mean you don't trust him? You let Alan come and visit me and me visit him, but you can't let me see Aikka? That doesn't make any difference!"

Don sat still. He was speechless. He knew that she was right, but he didn't know why he couldn't let her go. She was old enough to take care of herself, but he couldn't bear to lose her again. Finally he changed his mind.

"Okay… I'll let you visit him, but remember… I trust you", he sighed.

"Really?"

"Yes, but one condition! You have to take Rick and the other boys with you! And remember to call me when you get there."

Eva couldn't believe it! She was overjoyed that he finally let her go! She ran to her room and began packing her bags. After packing her bags she called Rick right away!

"Rick!"

"Hey, little mouse. What's up?"

"Guess what? My dad said yes!"

"Really? That's awesome! I'll tell the prince you'll come visit him then!"

"Yeah! But dad said that I could go only if you, Stan and Koji could come with me…"

"Well, I can come, but I have to hear with Stan and Koji first, then I'll make a call to your sweet prince."

"Rick!", she said and blushed.

"Bet you're blushing now! Hahaha, I'll call you later little mouse!"

He hanged up and smiled. "Hey, Rick sweetie.". Rick turned around and realized that Alice was standing behind him.

"You look kind of tired. Do want to grab some coffee?"

"Yeah, sure!", he said and put his arm around her. Alice blushed and giggled. She was thinking how lucky she was to have Rick. Even though he looked like a cold, shy guy on the outside, Alice knew that he was an adorable little puppy on the inside.

"Who called you?", she asked him.

"Eva. She told me that she could go visit Aikka, but only if I and Stan and Koji could come along."

"Who's Aikka?"

"He's the prince of Nouraisia and very close friend of Eva. Eva told me that he made a promise to her showing his kingdom. That's why we got invited. I'd like to go too, but first I have to talk with Stan and Koji! Do you think we could stop by and talk later?"

Alice nodded and both laughed. After drinking a couple cups of coffee, Rick made his way to the mechanics. He knew that the guys were still working at Miguel's. When he got there he couldn't find them anywhere! He looked around the machines and between the tools. _"Where are those guys?"._

"Hey! Hey, you! What do you think you're doing here?".

"Miguel!"

"Huh? Do I know you?"

"It's me Rick! Don't you remember me?"

"Rick…? OH! RICK! Long time no see, my boy! What are you doing here?"

"I was looking for Stan and Koji. Have you seen them?"

"Yeah, they just went out to buy some screws, but why don't you sit down and tell me what happen lately! I heard that you quit racing…"

They sat down on a dusty old couch in the backroom talking about racing, Rick's new job, life etc. Finally an hour later Stan and Koji came back with a gigantic bag of screws.

"Did you really have to mention all the screws in the book, Koji? It's took us years!"

"Talk about yourself! If you didn't flirt so much with the cashier lady, maybe it wouldn't take so long!"

"Hey, guys! Long time no see!"

Stan and Koji turned around and saw Rick leaning on the door to the backroom. "Rick! Hey, man! Long time no see!".

"Nice to see you again! How are you?", Koji asked him and pushed Stan to the side.

"I'm still same old me. How about you guys?"

"Were still the same old Stan and Koji", Stan said smirked.

"But what are you doing here, don't you have work to do?"

"Yeah… we can talk about it later, I'm kinda in a hurry. I came here to ask you a favor."

"What is it?"

Rick walked closer to them and told them about the invitation. Their eyes

popped out when they heard it. "So, what do you say guys?".

"That's sound awesome! Count me in!", said Stan.

"Me too! But how do we get there?", Koji asked.

"Can't you guys make some sort of portal to Nouraisia or build a ship to take us there?"

"Yeah, sure we can. But it'll take days. Can you wait for so long?"

"As long as you guys figure out a way!"

"Okay! We'll begin with it right away!"

"Awesome! See you later guys!", Rick said and walked out of the shop. He picked up his phone and dialed Eva's number.

"Hello?"

"Guess what, little mouse!"

"What?"

"We're going to Nouraisia!" 


	5. Chapter 5: Welcome to Nouraisia!

**A/N:  
>Chapter five is out! Enjoy!<strong>

**CHAPTER 5**

Her heart stopped beating. She couldn't believe what he just said. "Little mouse? Are you okay?", Rick asked her through the phone.

"NO WAY! YOU GOTTA BE KIDDING ME?"

"Noop!"

"THANKS RICK! YOU'RE THE BEST!"

"There's something you should know… we can't leave right away… Stan and Koji are working on a ship that can take us to Nouraisia. So we have to wait at least two more days!"

"Okay, if you say so!", she said and hung up.

"What's the matter, Eva?"

"I have to wait two more days before I can leave. Stan and Koji is fixing a ship to Nouraisia."

"Oh, I understand. But since you'll stay here for two more days… why don't we spend some time together?"

"Really? Yeah, that's awesome!"

"Mmm! What do you want to do?"

"Can we go to the new shopping mall? I heard they got a new shop full of racing things like goggles, gloves and stuff like that!"

"Let's go then!"

Don and Eva left the house and drove to the mall. They spent the next two days together watching movies at the cinema, buying new clothes, eating ice cream and they even went to the zoo! Eva was the luckiest girl in the world. Not only had she amazing friends, but also an outstanding dad! Nobody could make her happier!

Rick on the other hand was home and tried to reach Aikka through the intergalactic-communicator. Luckily for him he was there. Rick smirked at the prince's hologram. "Good news, dear prince! Eva, I and some other guys are coming for a visit!". Aikka smiled.

"When do you arrive?"

"We're coming about two days later. Stan and Koji are fixing a ship to Nouraisia."

"That's great! I shall prepare for your arrival, until then we will see each other very soon.", the prince said and hung up.

After those two wonderful days, Eva was ready to go. She packed her bags for the last time and got picked up by Rick. "See you in a few weeks, Dad!", she waved bye to her dad. She was kind of happy, but at the same time a bit sad. She could feel tears floating up in the corner of her eyes.

"It's okay, little mouse! You can always call him when we get there!", Rick said and stroke her head.

When they got there, Stan and Koji was all packed up and ready to go. Once again Miguel cried a bit. "Bye boys, remember to buy me a souvenir!", he said hugging the two boys. Both nodded and prepared the ship. It was twice as big as the old wizzing arrow and looked more like a jet plane, but still a ship. Everybody throw their bags in the ship and boarded it.

"Everybody must sit down on their seats and put their seatbelts on! It's gonna be a bumpy ride!", Koji shouted from the cockpit.

"YES, SIR!".

Eva got goose bumps and hold on tight to her seatbelt. The ship drove out from the garage in the back of the old shop and began rising upwards to the skies. Its silver-gray color sparkled as the sun shone its bright light on it. Stan counted down the seconds before taking off. Rick kissed his picture of Alice on his phone and Eva crossed her fingers hoping that it would take off nicely. _Three, two, one… take off!_

The ship flew higher and higher. Eva could feel the pressure getting heavier and heavier for each meter they flew up. Luckily for her she was used to it. Stan and Koji flew the ship like professionals. It was so easy for them it almost felt like floating on a cloud. For Rick and Eva it wasn't exactly like a five stars airplane, but still they enjoyed it. Eva looked out of the window. She could see the stars shining as they flew through space.

"Rick! Look at all the stars!"

"Yeah! They're pretty nice."

"When do we arrive?"

"Tomorrow."

"Yess! I can't wait to see Aikka ag-!", she stopped and held her hands over her mouth. "Hehehe… ignore what I just said".

"I heard that! Sure there's nothing between you and prince charming?"

"No! We're just friends, you know that!"

"Hmm… I talked to him two days ago."

"What did he say?"

"He said he'd prepare for our arrival tomorrow."

"Wow, I can't imagine how it'll be like in Nouraisia. I'm sure it'll be super awesome!"

"Yeah, I sure hope so! I didn't come along for anything you know!"

They laughed and laughed like old times. Rick was a really good friend of Eva. He understood her more than anyone. Almost like a big brother she always wanted, but never got!

While they were making their way to Nouraisia, the prince himself prepared for their arrival. He made sure everything was on its place when his guests arrived. The maids cleaned up all the rooms expect for Eva's room. Aikka wanted to give her a surprise when she arrived. He designed her room on his own making it look fantastic and breathtaking!

The bed was softer than a feather and the pillows had the exact same color as her eyes, crimson red. Beautiful flowers in all colors were hung up everywhere in her room. After all the preparations the prince was satisfied with its result.

"Who are you expecting, my friend?".

A warm hand leaned on his shoulder. "An old friend of mine is coming tomorrow, Keiran.", Aikka said and smiled to his him.

"Is this earth girl coming tomorrow?"

"Yes. So we have to be at our best behavior when she arrives."

"As you wish", Keiran bowed and left the room.

Back on the ship Eva stretched her body. She felt like a rusty old screw sitting on her seat. She got up and went to the bathroom to fix her hair. _"Wow, my hair is getting longer and longer",_she thought while combing through it. She went back to her seat and picked up her diary. On the other side of the room Rick was already sleeping. He snored so loud it sounded like two elephant's mating.

_"Dear diary… guess where I'm tomorrow! Nouraisia! I can't wait to see Aikka again. I'm so excited! I wonder how he looks like and if he still remembers me? Maybe he's even cuter than before!"._Eva scrapped over the last line while blushing! What was she thinking of? Aikka? Cuter?

_"Snap out of it, Eva! He's a prince and you're just a girl from earth! Besides, maybe he doesn't feel the say way about you…", _a voice insider her said.

Feel what? _"I must be going crazy!", _she thought and shook her head. _"Gotta get that out of my mind! Argh… who cares! I,I don't and I won't fall in love with anyone! But why does he have to be so cute?". _Eva closed her diary and put it back in her bag. "Sweet dreams, guys!", she whispered and closed her eyes.  
><em><br>_"GOOD MORNING SUNSHINE!", Rick yelled and stretched his arms. "Time to wake up, little mouse!", he said and shook Eva's shoulders.

"mmm… go away… let me sleep just a little longer, dad…".

"Dad? Hahaha, you're not on earth anymore, Eva! Wake up. We'll arrive at Nouraisia soon! Better fix yourself before with meet Aikka!", Rick teased her.

Eva's eyes popped up and she jumped of her seat stressing to the bathroom! "Good morning guys! Hope you slept well!", Koji said when he came in the cabin room.

"Yes, of course! Did you guys get any sleep at all? Looks like you've been driving the ship all night long."

"Nah… not really! We put the ship on auto-pilot so we also could get some sleep."

"Nice! Koji, you're a genius!"

"Thanks, but I just helped. It was Stan who fixed it!", he pushed his glasses up.

"When do we arrive?"

"About ten minutes from now, so get ready to land!", Koji said and went back to the cockpit.

"Hey, little mouse! Hurry up in there! We're gonna land in ten minutes!", Rick knocked on the door.

"Ok! I'll be out there in a minute!"

_"Ohhh! What to wear? What to wear!",_she said digging in her pile of clothes. She grabbed a red top with white polka dots on it and a black denim jean and tied up her hair in a small ponytail and went back to her seat.

"How do I look?", she asked and turned around to Rick.

"You look good enough for a prince to kiss you!", Rick winked.

She blushed and sat down own her seat. Few minutes later the ship landed on the beautiful kingdom of Nouraisia. They landed on a small open landscape near the town. "Welcome to Nouraisia people! ", Stan shouted from the cockpit. Eva grabbed her bags and stepped out the doors. "C'mon Rick! Let's go!", she said and tried to pull him with her.

"Wow! It's even better than I imagined! It's so beautiful!"

"Yeah… but now that we're here… where's Aikka?"

"You there, humans! What do you think you're doing here?".

Eva and Rick turned around. Three nouraisian guards were pointing their spears at them. "Do you not know that humans are forbidden on Nouraisian ground?", one of them said and frowned.

"B, but you don't understand! We're friends of the prince! We've been invited here!", Eva tried to tell them.

"How dare you to call yourself a friend of the prince? I have never heard such nonsense! You shall be punished for breaking the laws of Nouraisia! Take her to the dungeon!", the guard commanded the other two.

"Huh? Wait! No, please! This is a misunderst-!"

"Stop! I forbid this!", a voice suddenly shouted.

Eva looked up and blushed. Her eyes widened when she saw he's familiar face. It was Aikka! He flew above her on his mount, G'dar.

"Your highness! But she is an enemy! She broke two of the laws! She must be punished!"

"Release the girl at once! She is one of my honorable guests and they shall be treated like one too!", Aikka commanded.

The guards let her go. G'dar flew lower to the ground so Aikka could welcome his guests. "I apologize for the rough reception, please do not be afraid. Welcome to Nouraisia, Eva.", Aikka smiled and bowed.

"Aikka!", Eva said and jumped in his arms.

Aikka blushed, but put his arms around her and hugged her as well. Soon they realized that the hug maybe was bit too long for just being friends and backed off from each other. It was kind of embarrassing when the guards and Eva's friends stared at them. He cleared his throat and turned around to Rick and the other guys.

"Welcome to Nouraisia, my friends!", he said and bowed.

"Hey, long time no see!", Stan said and smiled.

"Yes, indeed."

"How are you?", Koji asked while pulling their bags closer.

"I am fine, thank you. Your things seem very heavy. Please, let the guards carry them for you to the palace. Ah! Forgive me for forgetting my manners. You must be tired! Maybe we should show you the way to the palace?"

"Yes, that would be nice! We could all use some rest.", Rick answered him.

"The guards will show you the way to the palace. You can ride with them in that carriage."

"Follow us!", the guards said and carried their bags. They put them on the back of the carriage. "Was that all?", one the guards asked them. They nodded and walked towards the carriage.

"Eva…", Aikka grabbed her hand.

"Yes?"

"Would you care to join me for a ride? I want to show you everything in the kingdom."

Eva nodded and walked with him to his mount. He lift her up on G'dar and sat down in front of her. "Hold on tight!", he said and commanded G'dar to fly up to the sky. Eva held her arms tightly around his waist as they flew through the shivering cold sky. Wow! Nouraisia was really breathtaking! There were red trees everywhere, almost like the trees in Oban.

"What's that lake over there?"

"That lake is called Luna. The water is certainly magical! It can heal any wounds on your body and we also use it as medicine to cure our people!"

"Really? That's awesome! Wish we had a lake like that on earth! Can you take me there later?"

"Yes, of course!"

Eva blushed at Aikka's smile. He was even cuter than before! She couldn't take her eyes away from him even when he turned around. Aikka commanded G'dar to fly lower so they could land. When they landed, Aikka helped her off and showed her the way to her room. He was excited for her reaction when they walked towards her room. On the way to the room, they came across his parents! Aikka tried to hide Eva by standing in front of her, but unfortunately his parents saw them!

"Who are you hiding behind your back, Aikka?", his mother asked and came closer.

"I don't know what you're talking about!", he said and tried to laugh it away.

"Nonsense! I saw you hiding someone behind your back!", his father said and raised a brow.

"Um… Aikka?"

The queen pushed her son to the side and got really surprised when she saw Eva's face. Both the king and queen startled at the young girl. The kings jaw dropped to the ground and was about to say something when the queen put her arms around Eva. Eva stood still like a statue and didn't know what to do!

"Welcome to Nouraisia, my dear!", the queen smiled and hugged her.

"T, thank you… your majesty!"

"You must be Eva, is that right?"

"Yes, your majesty!"

"So nice to finally meet you! I heard so much about you! Aikka's right, you are certainly a beautiful young lady!"

"Mother!", Aikka blushed. He tried to hid it by looking down on the floor.

"Really?", Eva giggled and blushed.

"I,I …"

The king cleared his throat and suggested that Aikka could show her the way to her room and asked him if they could talk later. Aikka nodded and pulled Eva's hand and walked towards her room. The queen watched the young couple walking hand in hand through the halls of the palace.

"Nori, my queen. What were you thinking of?"

"Nothing, darling.", she said and stroke his cheek. After she stroked his cheeks he knew that he couldn't say anything against her. She was after all his wife and the queen so he was sure that she had something good on her mind.

**A/N: **  
><strong>And there you go! A lot of fluffyness and sweet scenes in this chapter! What's on the queens mind? Find out in the next chapter! Until then guys, keep reading and please review so I know what I can do better next time! <strong>


	6. Chapter 6: Curiosity and flowers

**A/N:  
>Wow! Would you look at that! Chapter six is out already! I hope you guys like it!<br>CHAPTER 6**

"Whoa! Look at this place! It's so awesome!", Stan smirked.

"Yeah! And think of all the stuff we can buy here! Intergalactic fuel for the skips, new tools, and a souvenir for Miguel! I can't wait for tomorrow!", Koji agreed.

"What about you, Rick? What do you want to get for your girlfriend?", both asked him.

"I don't know… maybe some flowers…?"

"If you're thinking about buying flowers, you should pick the blue sakura flowers. They are one of the rarest flowers here in Nouraisia! And it's told that if you give your love the flower, all your dreams will come true!", one of the guards suggested.

"Hmm… where can I get one of those?"

"I can show you later, Sir."

"Thanks! What's your name?"

"My name is Lerooy. And you are?"

"Rick. Rick Thunderbolt. And those two other guys are Stan and Koji."

"We have arrived!". Rick and the other guys helped Lerooy and the other guards carrying the bags to the palace. Lerooy showed them their rooms and divided their bags in each room. "Dinner will be served soon, I suggest that you make yourself decent and meet up later…". The guys nodded and closed their door.

"You have to forgive my mother, sometimes she just say things without thinking…", Aikka apologized while he and Eva was still walking to her room.

"Nah, it's ok. I kinda like your mom already. She seems very nice!"

"Here we are. This is your room. I hope you like it. I have to go now, duty calls. But if there's something you need, just let me know.", Aikka bowed and left Eva.

Eva opened the door and her jaw dropped right to the ground. The room was amazing! The wonderful smell of the beautiful flowers on the wall, the gorgeous view to the sea, and the gigantic bed in the middle! This room was fit for a princess. "Wow! It's so beautiful! I wonder who did this?". She pulled her bags in and closed the door. Eva jumped on the bed and landed on the soft pillows matching her eyes.

"I got to tell dad about this! It's so awesome! I can't believe it!", she said and looked for her phone between her bags. She dialed her dad's number and waited for him to pick up.

"Hello?"

"Hey, dad!"

"Eva?"

"Yeah, it's me! What's up down there?"

"Eva! Oh, it's so good to hear your voice! Are you ok there?"

"Yeah, dad! You should have come with us! It's so amazing here! I got a huge room fit for a princess and the people here are so nice to me! Even the queen gave me a hug!"

"Really? Well, that's nice to hear that the queen likes you. I hope you'll enjoy your vacation there!"

"Yes, of course I am! I miss you dad…"

"I miss you too, but it's ok. We'll see each other soon!"

"Hahaha, yes! Well, okay since I don't have anything more to say… I'll just hang up! Bye!"

"Bye."

Eva hung up and closed her phone. She held it up to her chest and sighed. _"He said he was fine, so there's nothing to worry about, Eva! Let's go find Aikka instead!", _a voice in her head suggested. She nodded and walked to the door.

When she walked out the room she got confused. There were so many rooms in the hall she couldn't figure out which one of them was Aikka's room! She walked to the first door to the left and knocked on it.

"Hey, Aikka! I was thinking maybe you wante-!", she stopped and blushed. Eva startled at the person in the room. It was a nouraisan boy! He wasn't wearing any shirt on and was about to change when Eva came knocking by. He looked just like Aikka, but instead he had green eyes, darker skin, and chestnut brown hair.

He was slightly shocked and stared at her with huge eyes. Eva slammed the door and hid behind a statue.

"Hello? Who's there?", he asked and looked around for her.

"I, I'm sorry… I didn't mean to… barge in…".

He walked closer to the statue and saw Eva hiding her face between her arms. She opened her arms carefully and blushed.

"I'm so sorry!".

"It's ok… it was an accident."

"I was just looking for Aikka… do you know where his room is?"

"Yes, his room is the first one to the right", the boy answered and pointed at Aikka's room.

"Thank you…?"

"Keiran. My name is Keiran. You must be Aikka's friend...?"

"Yes, that's me! I'm Eva."

"Eva? What a beautiful name…"

Eva blushed and walked towards Aikka's room. Keiran went back to his room and put a shirt on. Thank God he had darker skin so Eva couldn't see him blush. _"Wow. Aikka's right… she's really one of a kind…",_he thought for himself and smirked.

Eva knocked on the door and opened it slowly. She closed her eyes hoping that he had clothes on. It would be so embarrassing to see _him_half naked like the last boy.

"Yes?"

"Aikka? Are you in there?"

"Eva?"

"Um… d, do you have c, clothes on…?"

Aikka looked confused at his clothes, but realized what she meant. "Y,yes.. you can come in."

She came in and closed the door. Aikka sat behind his desk trying to write something on a piece of paper. She came closer and stood behind his back watching him writing. "What are you writing?", she asked and leaned on his shoulder. Aikka blushed by the touch of her skin near his cheeks.

"A l, letter to a friend of mine who lives far up north Nouraisia…", he said trying not to shake like a jelly. His hands shook more and more as Eva leaned closer to him.

"Hmm… that sounds like a lot of work! Why don't you take a break?", she suggested and took her head of his shoulder.

Aikka could feel a relief when she let go of his shoulder. "Yes, that's a great idea. What do you want to do?"

"I saw you had a pretty nice garden on the back of the palace. Why don't we go there?"

"That sounds great!"

He stood up and walked out of the room giving Eva a sign to come with him. They walked through the halls and out to the garden. The garden was absolutely beautiful! There were flowers everywhere in all colors and a small river nearby. "Hey, there's a river down there!", Eva pointed at the water.

"Yes, but that's only a small river from the lake, Luna. Do you want taste the water?", he asked her and gave her some sort of mug to pour water in.

"Yeah, sure!"

Eva and Aikka poured water in their mugs and took a sip. Eva could feel her taste buds dancing around her tongue. The water tasted like bittersweet candy and was really remarkable!

"It's delicious! No wonders why you guys use it as medicine!"

"Yes, indeed. Do you want me to show you the flowers too? There is each one of a kind."

"Yeah, why not?"

They walked away from the river and sat down on the soft meadow. Eva picked up flowers in different colors and smelled them. She breathed out and felt like sleeping after all those wonderful smells.

Aikka picked up a bunch of flowers and sat them beside Eva. He told her about all the flowers and what they symbolized. He picked up a golden yellow flower, called flowdaisan.

"This flower symbolizes happiness and it spreads laughter and happiness among your family and friends."

"It's pretty. What about that red one over there?"

"The red one is called Rafflesia and it symbolizes passion and warmth. But there's one special flower I want to show you…"

Aikka picked up a blue sakura flower and placed it on Eva's right ear. She blushed while Aikka put the flower in her hair.

"How do I look…?"

Aikka smiled. "You look wonderful…"

Eva could die of happiness! She could feel her cheeks blushing furiously when Aikka smiled at her.

"Really?"

He nodded and scratched his cheek while blushing. She was different from all the other girls Aikka met. Not only was she beautiful, but she also had personality not that fake and proper behavior like the other princesses. Eva also noticed that Aikka had change a bit. His shoulders was wider, he got bigger muscles, and was cuter than ever!

Both stared into each other's eyes and there was an awkward silence between them. Eva looked to the side and tried to think of something to say to break the silence.

"A prince after his princess?".

Aikka and Eva looked to the side. His old fencing master, Canaan stood right beside them. Aikka stood up immediately and bowed to his master.

"I, it's not what it l, looks like…", Aikka mumbled.

"Hmm… whatever you say, my prince. Welcome to Nouraisia, Eva!", he suddenly said and bowed.

"T, thank you…"

"Eva! We're going out to the market, do you want to join us?", Rick shouted a few meters away from them.

Eva looked behind her and nodded. "I guess I'll see you later…", she said and ran to Rick and the other guys. Aikka waved bye to her and sighed.

"Your father is looking for you, my prince. You should go and hear him out.", Canaan suggested.

"Yes, tell him I'm on my way…"

Rick clapped Eva's head and asked her what happen between her and the prince. Eva looked up and saw him grinning. She blushed and looked down on the grass. "Nothing special… where are we going?", she asked him ignoring his question. Rick shook his head and smirked.

"We're going to buy some gadgets the guys need and I'm gonna buy something for Alice. Good that you came along. I don't know anything about thing women like…"

"Hahaha, good thing I came along! What do you get for her?"

"One of the guards, Lerooy, suggested that I could buy her some flowers. He said something about a blue sakura flower… hmm… like that one in your hair."

"Huh? This one? Yeah, I think it's a really pretty flower, but where can we buy one of these?"

"Lerooy said that he knew someone who could give us some sakura flowers… I have to find that person…"

"But why do you have to through all that trouble when you just can pick some of those in the garden?"

"The garden? No, that wouldn't be right. We can't just pick flowers from there without asking permission!"

"I can ask Aikka if you want…?"

"Hmm… yeah, maybe…"

"Hey, guys! We found it!"

Stan and Koji stopped in front of a huge store full of gadgets, tools, pilot-clothes and other things they needed. They walked in and startled at all the things. "I think I'm in love…", Stan smiled.

The guys grabbed a basket and shove in all the things they could find. Almost like little kids in a candy store. Eva went to the pilot-clothes section and picked a few shirts and tried them out in the changing room. Rick sat down on a little couch nearby and waited for her to come out.

"What do you think?", she asked and came out in a purple sleeveless hoodie.

"Looks nice, I guess?"

Eva shrugged and went back to the changing room and put the shirts back on the shelf. She walked over to Stan and Koji who struggled to find their money in their pocket. Luckily the cashier lady was very patient and kept on smiling. Rick shook his head and opened his wallet and gave the guys some money. They took the money and paid and apologized to Rick after they went out of the store.

"Thanks Rick, but you didn't have to do that…", they said and scratched their head.

"Don't think about it. As long as you guys got what you needed."  
>Both the guys could feel tears coming up their eyes and hugged Rick. Rick tried to push them away while Eva stood there laughing and laughing. She suggested that they could go back to the palace since it was dinner soon. The guys nodded and let go of Rick. They headed back to the palace.<p>

Back at the palace the prince made his way to the throne room where his parents waited for him. He had a feeling that they would talk about his duties, the kingdom's future and all that again. He was tired of his duties; sometimes he just wished he could be a normal boy without any worries at all. The guards opened the doors and let the prince in.

The king and queen sat on their thrones and gave him a serious face. Aikka sighed and came closer. The king stood up and sighed too.

"I suppose you know why asked you to come…?"

Aikka shook his head and tried to remain calm. He was always nervous when his father wanted to speak with him. He could feel a cold shiver crawling up his back.

"Do you know what day it is tomorrow, my son?"

"Yes, father. Tomorrow is the royal ball…"

"Correct. Then I suppose you have found someone to take with you to the ball?"

"No. Not yet…"

"Then you have to find someone to go with! This is important, Aikka!"

"I know…

"You know your duties as a prince! Soon you will have to marry a princess and become king after me! You are the only heir of this kingdom and you know that you cannot rule it alone! If you don't find someone to take with you to the ball tomorrow, you will have to go with lady Asami!"

"I understand…"

"Good. You can leave now…"

Aikka left the room and went back to his room. He tried to think of someone he could take with him to the ball. Suddenly he realized who he could take with him! Eva's image popped up like a bomb in his mind! He walked out of the room and went back to the garden. He picked some blue sakura flowers and made a beautiful bouquet out of them.

"Who are you giving those to, Aikka?"

Before he could around to see who it was, the person grabbed the bouquet of his hands and smiled.

"M,mother?"

"They are beautiful… I suppose you will give it to someone special…?",

"N, no… I, I thought I could give them to e…e,ev-"

"Eva?"

Aikka's eyes widen and his cheeks blushed furiously. He looked to the side and nodded.

"Why that's lovely! How sweet of you… did you want to ask her to the ball tomorrow?"

"Y, yes… but I don't know how…"

"Try to give her these flowers. I am sure she will love them and certainly say yes!"

"Yes, perhaps…"

"Well, there she comes. Now is your chance, my son! Go and ask her.", the queen said and handed over the flowers. Aikka shook his head, but she pushed him further and gave him a smile.

Aikka cleared his throat and walked towards Eva and the other guys. Eva saw him coming and smiled causing him to get more nervous! Rick raised a brow as he came closer and almost stood in front of her to protect her somehow. Stan and Koji walked to their room leaving Rick and Eva walking towards their room.

"Hey, Aikka!", Eva smiled and waved at him.

"H, hello…", he answered and looked to the ground.

"What wrong?"

"I, I wanted to ask you something…"

"Oh? What is it?"  
>He looked at Rick and gave Eva a sign that he wanted to talk to her private. She looked confused at him, but then realized what he meant!<p>

"Sorry Rick, but you have to go…", Eva said and pushed him away.

"Mmm… I don't know…"

"Please?", she begged and gave him the puppy eyes.

Rick knew that he couldn't resist that face and shook his head. "Alright, alright… I'll go. But remember! I keep my eyes on you two.", he said and grinned.

When he finally left the two alone Eva took Aikka's hand and pulled him to the garden. They sat down on the meadow and looked at the flowers.

"So… what did you want to ask me?"

"There's a ball tomorrow and I thought maybe… y, you wanted to go … w, with me…? If you want to… of course…"

"A ball? Hmm… yeah, why not?"

"Really?"

"Yes, but I don't have anything to wear…"

"One the maids can help you find a dress, if you want…"

"Hmm…okay."

"That's great. I have something I want to give you…", he said and gave her the bouquet.

"Wow! They're beautiful! Thank you, Aikka!", she smiled and gave him a hug.  
>Aikka could feel his heart beating faster and faster when Eva came closer and placed her arms around him. He returned the hug and could hear some maids going <em>"aww…"<em> in the background. "Hush! Be quiet. Do not ruin their moment.", the queen whispered and chased them away.

Eva went back to her room and jumped on the bed. She held the flowers up to her chest and smiled. Right now she could die of happiness! She blushed at the thoughts of waltzing with Aikka the next day.

**A/N:**  
><strong>Hahaha, I know what you're thinking! What happens next! Find it out in the next chapter! Remeber to review! <strong>


	7. Chapter 7: The royal ball

**A/N:  
>Hi, guys! Sorry for making you wait so long! But here it is! Chapter seven! Enjoy and remember to review!<strong>

**CHAPTER 7**

Eva woke up by the noise of someone knocking at the door. She pulled the sheets and pillows over her head trying to ignore it, but it kept on knocking and knocking. _"If only I had a machine gun right now…",_she thought and got up.

"Grr… WHAT?", she yelled when the doors opened.

The maids got shocked and stood back. "Ups! S, sorry… I thought you were somebody else, hehehe…", Eva apologized.

"We can come back if you wish, my lady…"

"No, no, no! Please don't go! Come in, come in!"

"If… you insist."

The maids came in with a huge pile of dresses and placed them on the dressing table. All the dresses were in different colors and had different bows, frills, ties and everything on them! Eva knew what this was about and sighed.

"Did Aikka send you here?"

"Why of course, my lady! The prince himself requested the best tailors in whole Nouraisia to make you all these dresses!"

"What? But he didn't have to go through all that trouble! I could have just buy a couple dresses on my own at the market..."

"The market? No, my lady! Why go through all that trouble, when the royal family can provide the finest dresses for you to try?"

"Well, I should at least be thankful…"

"Would you like to take a bath before trying some dresses?"

"A bath?"

"Yes, my lady. You can chose between a warm bath at the hot springs or a small bubble bath at the bathroom. Which one?"

"I, I think I'll just go with a simple shower in the bathroom…"

"Would you like to try the new soaps? We have a light blue heart shaped soap that has a sweet scent of blue sakura flowers and a round purple soap that smells like lavenders. Which one do you want, my lady?"

"If I were you, what would you chose?"

"I like the blue one!", one of the other maids said.

"Hush, Melody! Let her chose!"

"It's ok! I like her idea. I'll take the blue one!", Eva said and winked at the other maid.

She took the blue soap and went to the bathroom. After a warm shower she came out with just towels on. "Wait! I'm not-!", she tried to say before the maids grabbed each side of the towel and pulled it off her! Eva stood there and hid her body between her arms.

"Cover her!"

They covered her in small blankets and brushed her hair into a small ponytail. "Ok, my lady. Now you have to choose a dress.", the head maid said and handed over a couple dresses. Eva walked to the dressing room and changed one dress after another. She didn't like the two first dresses, but when she tried the third dress she came out and showed it to the maids.

"What do you think?"

"It's beautiful! Right, ladies?"

The other maids agreed and nodded. Eva went back in and changed. She came out with the dress and handed it over to the maids. "I think I found the dress!".

Her stomach growled. It growled so loud it sound like tractors driving up her belly. "Ups… I must be hungry."

"Oh! How could we forget! We apologize, my lady. You should have been eating breakfast instead of going through all this trouble! We are very sorry!"

"No, no, no! It's ok! After all, if I didn't get help now maybe I wouldn't find a dress on my on… "

Eva smiled at them and went back to the changing room and changed to her normal clothes. She left her room and walked to the dining hall where Rick, Stan, Koji and the other was waiting for her.

"I hope they serve something good…", Stan complained.

Koji pushed him and looked at the other nouraisians sitting across the table. "Stan! Don't be so rude! I heard that Nouraisian makes the finest soups in the whole galaxy so I'm pretty excited to taste their food here!".

"Good morning, guys!"

"Hey, Eva! Morning! Did you get some sleep last night?", Stan and Koji asked and grinned.

"Give her a break, you two.", Rick shook his head. He pushed out a chair and Eva sat down beside him.

The doors opened and the king and queen arrived and sat on each end of the table. The king gave them a warm, but serious smile. Queen Nori sat and smiled as happy as she could be.

"Where is the prince?", king Lao asked and looked at Canaan.

"I do not know, your majesty… do you want to look after him?"

"Why, of course! Tell him quickly. Our guest must be very hungry…"

"Yes, your majesty."

Canaan left the room land went looking for the prince. "_Where could that boy be? He is never late for breakfast…?"_, he asked himself.

The prince on the other hand down by the sea practicing fencing with his best friend, Keiran. Both the boys were skilled in martial arts, fencing and archery. They learned pretty much the some things when they were young. When the prince was little his parents were very strict raising him up, he didn't even have time to play as a normal child, but then Keiran came along. Aikka and Keiran had been friends for years; they were pretty much attached to one another, almost like brothers.

"Hooyaaa!"

"Nice try, my friend! But you have to need more than that to beat me!"

Aikka smirked and aimed his sword at Keiran and ran at him, but Keiran stepped to the side and made him miss! Then they took a break and sat down on the sand looking at the sun rising up behind the waters.

"Prince! Prince Aikka!"

The boys could see Canaan running to them on the sand. When he finally reached them his face was dripping sweat all over the sand. Aikka looked worried at him and asked him what was wrong.

"You have to hurry, my prince! Your family and guests are waiting for you at the dining room. They haven't begin eating yet, you have to hurry or else they will starve!"

"Keiran! Take the swords with you and let's go!"

They picked up the swords and headed back to the palace. Back at the palace the royal family and the guests waited patiently for Aikka to arrive. Stan and Koji began to feel a bit inpatient and wanted to scream, but held it back knowing the others might yell at them. Eva couldn't hold herself any longer either. She didn't get to eat anything since the maids came to her room. Queen Nori looked at her guests and noticed their inpatient and asked the musicians to play something to calm them down. The musicians played a calm melody and Eva could feel her hunger melting slowly away as she listened to the beautiful melodies. The music was interrupted by the sound of the squeaking doors opening.

"I apologize for being late!"

"Where have you been?", the king asked with a deep tone.

"I was practicing with Keiran down at the sea…"

"Very well… since you are here now, I suggest that you sit down and join us."

"Yes, father…"

There was an empty chair next to Eva and Aikka thought he could sit beside her, but then Keiran took the chair from him and he had to sit next to his father instead which he didn't like at all. Keiran smiled at her, but she didn't smile back at him but looked down at the table instead. Somehow she wanted Aikka to sit next to her too, but she didn't know why.

Canaan rang a small bell and waiters came from everywhere and began serving the food. Soon the whole table was filled with delicious food and drinks. Everybody could feel spit dripping from their jaws. When the king and queen gave their guests a signal that breakfast was served, all the guests grabbed food from each plate not on a greedy way, but somehow a graceful and elegant way as noble people should eat.

Rick filled his plate with something similar to egg and bacon and looked at Eva who sat stirring her food. "C'mon, little mouse eat! Didn't you say that you can't say no before you tried it?"

"I don't know…"

"C'mon! I'm sure it doesn't taste that bad?"

Eva swallowed her spit and took a spoon full of the food and gave it a try. She chewed and chewed and realized it didn't taste that bad.

"Hey, what do you know? It actually pretty good!"

"Right? That's what I told you!"

"Do you want to try some of this, Eva?"

She looked to the side and saw Keiran holding up a spoon full of blue porridge. First she wanted to say no thanks, but when she saw the waiters staring excited at her, she could hold it back and opened her mouth. Aikka looked up from his plate. He glanced at them and frowned. He wanted to throw something at them to distract Eva from Keiran, but he held it back and asked himself why he was angry. Eva could feel Aikka staring at her and Keiran and moved back a bit.

"What do you think?"

"Mmm… it's yummy…", she said and looked at the floor.

Keiran smiled and looked at Aikka giving him some sort of smirk. Aikka tightened his fist under the table and suddenly became angrier. After the breakfast he walked straight out to the garden and sat under the three and tried to clear his mind. Eva followed him and surprised him by sitting next to him.

"A penny for your thoughts?"

"Huh? Oh, Eva…"

"You look kind of sad… something wrong?"

"No…"

"Sure? Looks like you need some cheering up! Why don't we walk take walk?"

"I don't know…"

"C'mon! Trust me! It'll cheer you up!", she took his hand and ran to the meadow.

Eva ran as fast as she could with him into the meadow, but tripped over a rock and landed on the grass with him landing on her. She closed her eyes in the fall, but opened it when she heard him landing on her. She could hear him breathing heavily and her heart beat faster and faster for each breath he took. Aikka looked down at her and blushed. He had never been so close to a girl before! His heart beat faster and faster, he tried to control it, but he just couldn't! They stared into each other's eyes like before and Aikka leaned a bit closer to Eva's face. He stared at her lips and wanted them so badly. She closed her eyes and waited for it. Their lips were about to touch each other when they heard a familiar voice calling for them! They got off each other immediately and blushed. Aikka cleared his throat and Eva scratched her head when they saw Keiran running towards them.

"Hey, what were you two doing? I looked everywhere for you!"

"We were just…", Aikka tried to explain and blushed even more!

"We just went for a walk! That's all!", Eva answered.

"Then why are your cheeks so red?"

Aikka and Eva looked at each other with big eyes. "Uh… we…just t, tripped over something red…"

Keiran looked confused at them, but eventually let it go. They headed back to the palace and ended up in front of Eva's door.

"I guess I'll see you later at the ball…"

"Yes, we look forward to it."

The boys left and Eva closed the door. She lied on the bed thinking of what just happened. Somehow she felt happy, giggled and blushed. Then she slapped herself and shook her head. _"What is this? Am I crazy? Maybe I've gone nuts…nuts for Aik-!"._ She shook her head again and walked over to the window. _"I wonder what dad's doing right now…"._

Back at earth Don grabbed a bowl of chips and an ice cold beer and was about to sit down watching the news when he heard the bell ringing. _"Did I invite someone…?",_he asked himself and walked to the door. The person kept ringing and knocking as if his life depended on it.

"Hello! Is someone home? HELLO?"

Don shook his head and was a bit irritated.

"What? Oh, it's you… what are you doing here?"

"Hey, Mr. Wei! What's up…? Hehehe…"

"What do you want Alan?"

"I was wondering if Eva was home…?"

"No, I'm sorry. She's not here."

"Huh? Where is she?"

"Somewhere far away… she's on a vacation visiting a friend of hers."

"Who? She didn't tell me anything about that!", Alan said and walked in without Don saying anything.

"Yes, but she's not here. Why don't you go back home?"

"Wait! Where did she go?"

"I said to an old friend of hers, now could you please leave?"  
>"Can't you tell me, Mr. Wei?"<p>

"No. Now please leave!", Don said and pushed him out again. He closed the door and went back to the couch. Alan didn't give up so easily and kept tapping on the window and knocking at the door till Don switched the TV off again and opened the door.

"Alright, alright! If I tell you, could you please leave me alone, kid?"

"Yes!"

Don sighed and told him about Eva's vacation. Alan's eyes became bigger and bigger for each word he heard. "She's what? But what is she doing there?"

"Alright, that was the last drop! Out!"

He chased him away and Alan went back to his house. He went straight to his room and searched for "Nouraisa" on his computer. _"Wow! It's amazing! I wonder if she took her phone with her…",_he thought and picked up his phone and tried to call her, but nobody picked up. He tilt his chair back and forth and tried again.

"Alan! Have you seen my purse!".

Alan lost his balance and fell down the floor with his face first. His mother shook her head and closed the door. When he came back to his self he felt like someone hitting him with a hammer. "Ouch…". He got up and walked out to the living room.

"What did you say… I didn't hear you…"

"Never mind. Your dad and I are going out so you have to watch your sister, okay?"

"What? No, please mom, please! Why didn't you just call a babysitter instead?"

"Because we have you. You're in charge! Don't burn the house down, sweetie.", she said and put her gloves on and walked out to the car.

"Heeeeey, Alan! What'cha doing?", his sister asked as she walked to him.

"Not now, Sophie. I'm trying to call someone."

"Are you trying to call that girl at your school?"

Sophie, was Alans little sister. She had brown hair like her brother, only in a lighter shade and she always had it in a ponytail. She was three years younger than him, but she understood things very fast. At the age of three, she could ride a bike without training wheels! To Alan, she was very annoying with all her questions, but on the inside she was just a sweet little girl.

"H, how did you know about that?"

"I heard you trying to call her just a minute ago."

"So what…?"

"Do you like her?"

"Huh! Who, Eva? Are you kidding me? No way…"

"Stop pretending, I know you like her!"  
>"NO? I don't! What about you? Didn't you tell me that Joshua in your class was the handsomest boy you've ever seen?"<p>

"WHAT? NO! Stop changing the subjects! I just think you like Eva!"

"NO! I DON'T!"

"Eva and Alan, sitting in a tree… k.i.s.s.i-!"

"Whatever…"

He pushed her to the side and walked back to his room. Sitting in front of the computer again he thought of what his sister just said_. "Do I like her…?"._

Back in Nouraisia Eva didn't have it any better herself. She was being pulled, tightened and dressed in every direction! "Wait, stop! I can't take it anymore! If you tighten this dress more I'm gonna die! Please, everybody stop!", she yelled trying to catch her breath back.

"We're sorry, my lady. But the ball begins soon and you have to get ready!"

"I know! But please, I can do this myself!"

"But, my lady! We were sent to help you!"

"I can see that, but please just let me handle the dress. You guys can fix the rest. Okay?"

"As you wish."

Eva sighed and fixed the dress. She tied the floral laces and looked at the mirror. The dress was a long red floral dress with elegant laces on the top. The maids put her hair in an elegant updo with curls hanging down and placed a red white sakura flower on top.

"How do I look?"

"You look absolutely beautiful, my lady. Isn't that right, ladies?"

"Yes, you look so pretty!"

"I love your hair!"

"I love the way your dress matches your eyes!"

"Thanks you guys, I wouldn't make it if it weren't for you…", Eva smiled and blushed. Somebody knocked at the door and asked to come in. "Hey, Eva are you ready to g-!".

Rick stared at her and smiled. Eva nodded and took his hand. She waved bye to the maids and left for the ball. The ball was held at the huge ball room in the heart of the palace. Every year the nouraisians held a ball to celebrate and have a good time with their friends and families. This year everybody was invited, usually it was only the royal family and their friends who was invited.

Eva was so nervous she could die! What if she looked horrible, what would her friends say, what would the king and queen say, and more importantly what would Aikka say? She could feel her hands dripping of sweat and let go of Rick's hand for a minute but placed it back again. She just wanted to faint, she didn't want to walk through those tall doors, she didn't want them to stare at her and give her an ugly look.

"I, I don't think I can do this…"

"What?", Rick asked her and looked worried. "What do you mean?"

"What if I don't look good, what if I ruin the ball, what if… nobody likes me?"

"What are you talking about, little mouse! You look fine, I promise. If somebody hurts you, I'll take care of it!"

"You really think so?"

"Yes, no problem. You look great. Now, enough talking, let's groove to the dance floor and show them who's boss!"

"Yeah!"

The guards opened the doors and let them walk through. Another guard stood right in front of a few couples introducing their names. Poor guy, all the names were so difficult to say, he sounded like he just mumbled the names. Finally when it was Rick and Eva's turn he could breathe out and cleared his throat and introduced them to everybody at the ball.

"May I present, Mr. Rick thunderbolt and lady Eva from earth!"

Everybody clapped as they made their way down from the stairs. Stan and Koji had black tuxedos on and actually groomed their hair for once.

"Hey, Rick! Wow, you look great, Eva!"

"Thanks, Stan."

"I like your dress… it goes with your eyes."

"Hehehe, you think so?"  
>"Yes, of course!"<p>

"Thank you, Koji. You don't look so bad yourself!"

"Eva? Is that you?"

She turned around and saw the queen looking surprised at her. She wore an elegant long white dress with golden sleeves matching her eyes and a silver crone on her head.

"Why, you look simply lovely, darling!"

"Thank you, your highness. You look wonderful today."

"Thank you, dear. I love your dress, where did you get it?"

"Well… the maids told me that Aikka sent a request for the finest dresses in whole Nouraisia just for me… I'm sorry if I caused him to go through a lot of trouble just for me…"

"It's nothing to be ashamed of! Aikka would never do such a thing if he didn't want to! I think he just wants you to be happy."

"Oh… well I have to admit, he's pretty generous."

"Well, why don't you tell him that? Oh, here is your chance! Here he comes! Aikka, dear!"

"Huh? Wait, n-!"

"Could you come over here for a second? I think there is someone who wish to speak to you!"  
>Eva could hear his footsteps coming closer and closer. She could feel her heart beating faster than ever! <em>"Oh, no! Gotta go hide! He can't see me now! Run!"<em>, she thought for herself. She was about to run when she bumped into someone. The person held her shoulders and Eva looked up. OH NO.

"Eva?"

"H, hi… Aikka… hehehe…"

He let go of her and she looked down at the floor. After he called her name, she looked up at him and her eyes widen. He was so handsome! Aikka was wearing some kind of white nouraisian shirt with loose sleeves and had some golden patterns on the sides like the ones on his amour. His hair was down and he looked even handsomer and cuter than ever! Eva could barely hold her eyes of him and could feel drool floating out her mouth_. "Snap out of it, Eva! Get back to reality before everybody starts staring at you!"_, a voice in her head said and winked with her eyes and realized that Aikka was waving his hand in front of her eyes.

"Eva? Are you alright?"

"Huh? Oh, snap!", she closed her mouth with both of her hands on her lips.

"Hahaha, what are you doing?"

"N, nothing… I just spaced out…"

"I can see that."

"Sorry…"

"You don't have to apologize. I understand you…"

"You do?"

"Yes, and I like your dress. It goes with your eyes, you look very beautiful tonight…", he said and blushed.

Eva couldn't help but blushing too. She could hear the musicians playing a sweet melody and she felt like dancing. Aikka looked at her and knew what she was thinking of.

"Would you care to join me for a dance, my lady?", he bowed and reached out with his hand.

"Huh? No, I don't want to… or I can't dance…"

"Do not worry, just follow my lead."

"I don't know…"

"Trust me."

Eva looked at his eyes and knew he was telling the truth and placed her hand in his. They moved to the center of the dance floor and slowly began to move at the rhythm of the melodies. Aikka placed his one hand on her waist and the other around her hand. Eva looked down at the floor blushing, but eventually looked up to his face. They looked into each other's eyes and blushed even more. He lifts her up in circles and catches her softly on a graceful way. As she landed she placed her arms around his neck. They came closer and closer to each other. She could feel his breath close to her lips. Eva closed her eyes slowly and they're lips were about to touch when someone grabbed her by the shoulder and took her away from Aikka's warm embrace.

"May I have this dance?"

"Keiran?"

She looked back at Aikka and kind of wanted to dance with him instead, but he nodded and frowned at Keiran. Keiran grinned and looked at Eva. She gave him a confused smile even though she wanted to be with Aikka, she sighed and danced with him. He put his hand down at her waist making her feel a bit uncomfortable and forced her to get closer to him. Eva tried to take his arm away from her waist, but he grabbed her closer and longer down her waist.

"Could you please take your arm away from me?"

"What do you mean?"

"Get your hands off of me!"

He grinned and leaned closer to her face. She stomped on his feet's causing him to scream a bit and let go of her. She ran out of the room hiding behind a curtain. Keiran ran after her but passed the curtains. Eva felt slightly afraid and panicked back to the ball room. Before Keiran could find her she had to find Aikka! She looked around everywhere and tried to scream his name through all the noise, but it didn't work. Somebody grabbed her by her arms and dragged her to a corner! She tried to break loose and brawled.

"Stop. Stop! Eva!"

She opened her eyes and looked up.

"Aikka! ", she said and ran into his arms.

"Why did you run? Did something happen?"

Eva kept saying his name and buried herself in his chest. Aikka placed his arms around her and tried to comfort her. He lifted up her chin and saw tears running down her cheeks. He wiped them away and asked her once more what happened.

"It was… nothing…"

"Are you sure?"

"Yes…"

Aikka smiled at her. Only his smile could cheer her up. Nobody else could make her feel that way. He treated her like a lady, a friend, a best friend. She felt safe with him around her. He stroked her head and they went back enjoying the rest of the ball. At the end of the day, Eva went back to her room, took off the dress and jumped to bed. She held the sheets close to her chest and tried to close her eyes, but the picture of her and Keiran always showed up!  
><em><br>"Argh! That stupid Keiran! If it wasn't for him Aikka and I could k-!"._ Eva shook her head and tried to empty her mind. She looked at the book shelf near the bed and grabbed one book hitting herself with it. Stars were spinning around her head and she fell asleep after counting a few of them.

**A/N:**  
><strong>Sorry if this chapter was kind of boring, but if theres something I can do better, please let me know in the reviews! Until then, stay tuned! <strong>


	8. Chapter 8: A true friend?

**A/N:  
>Enjoy chapter eight guys! Sorry if it took so long!<strong>

**  
>CHAPTER 8<strong>

The next day Eva woke up by the alarm on her phone. She grabbed the phone and threw it to the wall, but knew that she had to get up anyways. Someone knocked on the door shouting her name again and again. Eva got up immediately and fixed her hair. Pushing the blankets closer to her body, she asked who it was.

"Eva, darling? Are you in there?"

"Who is it?"

"The queen!"

"The queen? Oh, snap! W, wait! I'm just-!"

"Good morning!"

"G, good morning, your majesty…"

"Why, Eva! Why are you still in bed, you have to get up and go get dressed!"

"Huh? Why?"

"Did he not tell you?"

"Tell me about what?"

"Aikka was supposed to tell you to come meet me at the garden yesterday."

"I guess he forgot…?"

"How could he forget?"

"Please don't be mad at him your majesty… he was with me yesterday…"

"Hmm… perhaps you should get dressed now. I will be waiting at the royal garden."

Eva nodded and opened the closet looking for something decent to wear. After all, it wasn't a normal friend she was going to spend her time with, but the queen! The queen of Nouraisia! Some knocked on the door again.

"May we come in, my lady?"

"Oh, right on time! I can't find anything to wear today! Can you guys help me?"

"Of course. What are you looking for?"

"I don't know… maybe some kind of dress I guess?"

"For what occasion?"

"The queen said she wanted to spend some time with me…"

"THE QUEEN?"

"Yes?"

"Ladies! Quickly, find something decent, but pretty to miss. Wei! Now!"

All the maids rushed and stressed looking for something nice she could wear. It ended up messing up the whole room and there were piles of clothes everywhere!

"Which one do you prefer, my lady?"

"I think I'll just take the yellow one… and please… call me Eva…"

"As you wish, my lad-… Eva…"

Eva went to the changing room and changed into the pretty yellow dress. The dress had a red belt around her waist matching her eyes! She pushed her hair to the sides and walked out of the room after thanking the maids.

She walked through the quiet halls and came across Aikka's fencing master Canaan. He bowed to her and asked her how she was doing. Eva told him she was fine, but had to hurry since the queen was waiting for her. Canaan stepped to the side and let her pass. Soon she arrived at the garden and saw the queen sitting behind a table drinking her morning tea. She didn't look as happy as usual and. Eva could feel could shivers down her spine and bowed to the queen.

"I'm so sorry, your majesty! I didn't mean to be late! Please forgive me!"

"You have nothing to apologize for, darling. I understand."

"Really? I, I mean- … thank you, your majesty…"

The queen's voice was calm and sweet, like her personality. She is known for being quiet and calm, but was strong and serious when she had to.

"Come, sit down.", she said and gave the guard a sign to push out a chair for Eva.

Eva sat down and swallowed her spit. When the queen looked at her she was very nervous. She could feel small sweat drops running down her forehead. Her legs was shaking like jelly, but she tried to stay calm and breathed out.

"W, why did you ask to come…?"

The queen's voice changed to a serious tone and looked at her. She sighed, but said: "The king wanted me to tell you that Aikka has some royal duties today… so you mustn't disturb him!".

"What? But he was supposed to spend his day with me… at least just for today…"

"I am truly sorry, my dear, but we cannot make him lose his focus on the kingdom, it's very important that he attend at the meeting of the royal councils today."

"I understand…"

"Thank you, dear. But why don't you spend your day with Keiran instead? I am sure he wants to get to know you too as well."

"K, keiran? I think I'll pass."

"Oh, why not?"

"I just… have something else to do…"

Eva left the queen and headed back to her room. She walked back through the halls again and stopped outside Aikka's room. Her hand was about to open the door, but she stopped it and held it back. Her feet's began to walk again, but this time they lead her to back to her room. She closed the door and took her dress of and changed back to her normal clothes. _"C'mon, Eva! Don't think so much about it! The queen said that it was only today, right? Let's go find Rick and the others!"_, the voice in her head said. She agreed with herself and stepped out of the door again and headed for Rick's room.

She was going to knock, but decided to wait. She could hear Rick talking to someone on the phone. She considered coming back later since he was on the phone. Then the though hit her, she could go and hang out with Stan and Koji meanwhile! Their room wasn't far away from Rick's room and Eva stopped outside their door and knocked. Suddenly she heard an explosion! The door opened by itself and black smoke was all over the room.

"Stan! Koji! What happened?", she yelled through the smoke and tried looking for them.

"Who's there!"

"It's me! Eva! Where are you guys?"

"What the heck happened here?", a voice shouted from the other side.

Rick came closer to their room and saw smoking coming out from there. He pulled Eva to the side and looked after Stan and Koji through the smoke. Few seconds later Rick pulled the two guys out the room with dirt on their faces. Both cough and cleared their throats.

"Thanks, man…"

"What happened?", Eva asked looking worried at them.

"I told you not use the extra oil, Stan!"

"What'cha looking at me for? You told me to pour in the first thing on the table!"

"Yes, but not the oil!"

"Hey, it's not my fault! You're the one who told me to!"

"Don't blame me! I told you minutes ago to read the instructions!"

Both the guys gave each other ugly looks and growled at each other. Koji slapped Stan's face and Stan hit Koji so hard that his glasses fell of. Soon they started a fight. Eva shook her head and asked Rick to hold Stan away from Koji while she held him.

"Break it up, you two! There's nobody to blame! We're supposed to be here on a vacation, not to beat up each other's butt! C'mon!"

"No way! Not until he apologize to me!"

"Who said something about apologizing? You're the one who's supposed to apologize to me!"

"Alright, give it a break! You guys are supposed to be partners, not enemies! Now say sorry to each other!", Rick frowned.

They sighed and apologized to each other. "Partners?". They shook each other's hands and smiled. Koji asked Rick and Eva to help them cleaning up the room before the guards and the others noticed it. With all that mess they thought they never would be done! But eventually they managed to clean I all up!

Meanwhile at the council meeting the prince sat down listening to his father speaking to him and all of the other councils around him. Aikka was so bored and tired of all the speeches, but he knew that he had to be patient and listen well since it was very important not only for him, but also for Nouraisia's future. But still, he wanted to go out to the beach and spend some time with Eva.

"Do you understand?", the king asked the whole council.

Everybody agreed and nodded. King Lao noticed that Aikka wasn't paying attention and sighed.

"Aikka! Are you even listening to what I said?"

"Huh? Oh, I mean yes! Yes, father of course!"

"Then you understand what we just spoke about?"

"Y, yes…"

"Hmm… I believe that we are finished speaking now. Thank you all for coming to the meeting. You have my permission to leave…. everyone except for Aikka."

Everybody left the room leaving Aikka and the king alone. Aikka could feel a cold shiver through his spine and cleared his throat. King Lao gave him a sign to come closer as he stood and looked out from a window.

"Father?"

His father sighed and looked at him. "Aikka, you do know why we have royal council meetings right?"

"Yes, father. In the royal council meetings we discuss the kingdoms issues and future."

"Yes, that is right. But I believe that you know why you have been asked to come too?"

"I know…"

"Aikka, you are my only son and the heir of this kingdom. You know that I cannot be king forever and someday you have to take over. But you know as well your duties as a prince. You cannot rule this kingdom without a queen by your side. In an age of 20 as a prince you have to get married."

"I understand, but father can't I chose my own? I do not wish to marry someone I do not know, I want to fall in love and marry the one I love! Did you not marry mother because you loved her?"

"Of course I did! I wish for you to be happy too, my son. However, you have to marry princess Asami. It is the only way we can gain the trust between our two kingdoms and bond an alliance again! We can no longer take any chances! The war between our kingdom and the crogs has cost many lives and much of our resources! Our kingdoms future depends on the alliance! Do you understand now why this is so important, Aikka?"

"Yes, father. But what if I find someone else? What if I marry a girl from another planet and make an alliance with them?"

"You know full well my thoughts, Aikka! A prince has to marry a princess! That is the rules in Nouraisia and has always been from generation to generation… that is my final words. You are dismissed."

Aikka left his father alone for his thoughts. He walked through the halls and back to his room. On the way back he noticed black smoke coming out from a room in the corner. He was about to walk over there to ask what happened when he saw Eva face. He hid behind the wall feeling a bit uncomfortable. After what his father said, he couldn't face her. Instead he stood behind the wall waiting for them to leave. He could hear them talking.

"Thanks for helping. I think that was all. You can go now if you want!"

"No problem, but I was wondering if I could hang out with you guys a little?"

"Mmm… I don't know. We have still some things to do, but why don't you hang out with Rick instead?"

"He looks kinda busy, I thought I could hang out with you guys just a little bit…?"

"Sorry, but why don't you hang out with the prince instead?"

"I, I can't…", Eva said with a sad tone.

"Why not?"

"He's just too busy… he doesn't have time for me right now…"

"Oh… well I guess you'll just have to find something or someone else to hang out with."

"Yeah, I guess so. Thanks anyways guys."

"No problem!"

She couldn't believe it. Rick was too busy talking on the phone again, Stan and Koji had other things to do, Keiran wasn't even an option, and now Aikka was too busy to spend time with her too! She just hoped that things would get better tomorrow, but the next days were just the same. None of her friends cared about her, not even Rick! In fact, they didn't even say "hi" or "hello" once! She spent the next days by herself, alone and empty, but then she got an idea of calling her dad. If none of her friends didn't have time for her, at least her dad would care! Eva tried to reach him through the phone, but nobody picked up. _"That's just great! I came for a vacation and hang out with old friends, but they aren't much of a friend! I guess I'll just sit here and wait to die…",_she thought laying down on the grass under a tree. She shook her head and stood up. Walking through the halls again, she came across a little nouraisian man running around with a dress in his hands. He ran to Eva showing her the dress.

"Look at this dress, I made it for you!".

"Grrr… get lost! I'm trying to be sad!", Eva yelled at him causing him to run away.

Then she realized that some of the maids startled at her and their faces could tell that they were slightly shocked and afraid of her. They were probably thinking that she some kind of a maniac, screaming and yelling at random people she came across in the hallways. She didn't care and just continued to walking. Suddenly she heard someone talking in the end of the hall. Like Aikka before, she hid behind a wall and listened. She could hear a familiar voice. It was Aikka's! Eva's legs began to move by themselves and she tried to stop them, but it was too late. A cold hand dragged her back. "A spy, a spy!", an angry voice yelled from Eva's back. It was a guard from the palace. He had seen Eva long before she could see him! He pushed her out from the wall and towards the prince and the other nouraisians.

"I found a spy! What should we do with her!"

Aikka turned around to see who it was, but when he found out that it was Eva, he didn't dare to look her in the eyes. He could hear her trying to escape from the guard's tight grip. "Aikka! Help me!", she screamed, but he didn't answer her but just continued to look away. Canaan thought it was a bit weird, normally he would do something right ahead, but this time he just stood there expressionless and not answering her. "Release the girl. She is no spy. In fact, she is a friend of the prince.".

"Is it true, your highness?", the guard asked the prince.

Aikka didn't answer. Eva could feel rage inside her and shouted at him with tears coming up her eyes. "Aikka! Do something!".

But the prince still didn't react and Eva kept screaming and screaming his name. The guard ran out of patient and slowly dragged her away from the prince, but she didn't let her stop that easily. She wanted an answer and stomped on the guard's feet causing him to let her go in a scream of pain! Eva ran as fast as she could back to the prince stopping him only meters away from walking in where the council meeting was hold. She stood in front of him trying to get him to look her in the eyes.

"Aikka! Please look at me! Why didn't you do anything? Why didn't you help me? Don't you care about me anymore?", she yelled at him with tears in her eyes.

"I…", he stopped.

"Don't you care anymore?"

"I… do, but…"

"But what? Oh, I get it! You're just too busy taking care of your stupid duties all the time you don't even have time for your friends anymore!"

"That is a lie!"

"You're the one who's lying! You promised to spend time with me, Aikka! And now I can see that nouraisian knights don't have honor anymore because they can't keep their promises! I trusted you, Aikka…"

"That is enough! Guards! Take her away!", Canaan commanded them. The guards grabbed Eva and dragged her away. Aikka couldn't believe what she just said, but it was true! He made a promise to her! Now it was too late, he couldn't do anymore about it. The prince could only watch as the guards dragged his earth princess further and further away from him.

When the guards reached the garden they let her go. She fell on her knees and tears were running down her cheeks. The guards left her and shook their heads. If it wasn't Canaan she could have been dead by now. Eva got herself together and sat down resting under a tree. She tried to remain calm, but the image of Aikka always reminded her of what just happened. While wiping away her tears she lay down under the tree looking up. The tree reminded her of the moment she and Aikka stood under a tree in Alwas. She could still remember it.

_Angry and furious at her dad she flew away trying to find somewhere she could calm her mind. Walking in the rain she noticed that G'dar, the giant beetle was nearby whining in pain. She came closer and stroked his head softly trying to calm him down. Suddenly she heard noises coming from the room upstairs. It was probably the prince and the fencing master training! Walking up the stairs she could hear them fighting in a sword duel. "Prince, keep your guard up! No wonder Spirit surprised you!", Canaan shouted from the inside. Aikka swung his sword and ran towards his fencing master when he noticed that someone was watching them. He swung out his sword causing Eva to jump back. Looking confused at each other Canaan accused her for being a spy. Running away as fast as she could Aikka was right behind her. When he catches up with her, he explains that he was only practicing. He took her out from the rain using a tree as shelter. "It has been an unfortunate day…", he said._

"Yeah, for both of us."

He stood there smiling at her and was about to do something when his fencing master called after him. Aikka left her under the tree blushing as she watched him walking back to his pit.

Eva came back to herself. How could a so good friend not care about her anymore? What happened to the Aikka she knew? She kept asking those questions in her head without even knowing someone was standing next to her and watched her looking all confused and sad. The person grinned. He knew just what to do with her.

**A/N:**  
><strong>If you have any questions or advice I'd be glad to hear! Just leave a comment on the review! <strong>


	9. Chapter 9: Sweet escape

**A/N:  
>Hey, guys! I'm back! Sorry if you had to wait a while, but here it is! To be quite honest this chapter wasn't the easiest to write. I had to think through all my ideas till I finally figured out what to write! Anyways, chapter 9 is served ~ enjoy &amp; remember to review! xD<strong>

* * *

><p><strong>CHAPTER 9<strong>

She didn't understand. How could a good friend like him just treat her that way? Why didn't he do something when she called for help? Doesn't he care about her anymore? What's going on? Why did he change? A tear fell from her eye, but she wiped it away when she heard footsteps coming closer at her. A dark shadow blocked the sunlight from her face. She looked up and saw a horrible grin on the persons face. Eva got up immediately and tried to run, but the person grabbed her wrist and pulled her back into his arms. He tighten his grip around her and she fought against him as if there was no tomorrow. The more she squealed the more he tightens his grip. "Let go of me!", she yelled.

"I am not here to hurt you, Eva. Trust me.", he tried to comfort her while holding her in his arms.

"I don't believe you, let me go, Keiran!".

"Please believe me."

"No! Let go of me!"

He had no choice and let go of her. Before she could run away he sat down on the grass looking peacefully out the meadow like she did before. Eva looked at him; he seemed calm and wasn't trying to stop her. _"Maybe he's telling the truth…",_ she thought and walked carefully back and sat down a few meters away from him under the same tree. Both looked out the meadow and could feel the cold breeze stroking their cheeks. "I saw you crying. Is there something wrong?", Keiran asked her, but didn't make eye contact. The question hit her heart like an arrow and she really wanted to cry it out, but she just sighed. "I don't want to talk about it…". This time he looked at her and smiled.  
>"Is it about the prince again?", he asked while picking up a flower and smelled it.<p>

She nodded and looked away.

"Tell me what happened."

Eva refused to talk about it knowing that it would only cause her more pain. What was she supposed to say? _"Well, I wanted to talk to him, but then his stupid guards dragged me away and threw me back to the garden." _That sounded like a stupid answer and she shook her head and just ignored him.

"You can tell me anything, I promise not to tell anybody."

"You promise…?"

"I promise."

Eva sighed and told him exactly what happened and it seemed like he understood her somehow. He nodded and paid attention to each word she said. Finally she breathed out and let him think over what she just said.

"I understand your feelings, but you have to remember he is not just an ordinary boy, in fact he is the throne heir and prince of Nouraisia. And as a prince his duties for the kingdom always comes first."

"I know that, but it wouldn't kill him just spending some time with me…"

"Yes of course. However, the prince is too busy about the kingdom's future far more than his relationships with his friends."

"I just wished he had some time for me at least…"

"It is not always rainbows and butterflies; it is compromised and moves us along, but it does not mean you have to feel alone. I am here too as well. You can always speak with me about anything."

"T, thanks…"

"However… if you wish… I can make you forget him."

She looked confused at him as if he was planning something. "What do you mean?", she asked and moved carefully away from him.

His friendly smile turned into a frightful grin as he moved closer to her. Eva moved further away for each move he made. Keiran grabbed her wrist and pulled her closer to him. She tried to push him away, but he was too strong and leaned closer to her. "W, what are you doing?", she asked and almost screamed. He forced her down on her back and she squealed like a pig. The more she squealed the closer he'd get. He sat on top of her so she couldn't move. Feeling helpless and trying to scream for help, Keiran put his hand over her mouth so nobody could hear her. While his one hand covered her mouth, his other hand slowly crawled down her back.

A cold shiver blew down her spine and she could feel his nasty hands crawling down her back. She tried to stop him by pushing him and kicking him away, but it was no use. "Stop! Don't touch me!", she hands reached her waist and he pulled up her shirt reveling her white bra. He looked at her chest with desire and she felt so ashamed! Slowly opening it from the backside, she just wanted to give up. He leaned closer to her face almost touching her lips, but luckily she turned to the side with him kissing the grass instead. He looked away from it and continued his way down her lower body. "You have such beautiful skin… and your body, your curves…", he whispered in her ear. Her whole body was trapped underneath him and screaming for help didn't make it better. But no! She couldn't give up now! It couldn't end like this! She bit his hand causing him to get off her and screamed of pain. She took a deep breath and screamed as loud as she could:

**"AIKKA!"**

Suddenly a hand punched Keiran off her and pulled her to the side. Without hesitating she ran to the persons arms and let her tears run down her cheeks. "DO NOT DARE TOUCHING HER AGAIN!", the person yelled at him and placed his arms around her. Eva looked at her rescuer and she couldn't believe her eyes. It was Aikka! He saved her! Tears ran down her cheeks and this time she could cry a river. Keiran got up and wiped away the blood from his mouth.

"SAYS WHO? HER GUARDIAN?"

"SAYS HER PRINCE."

Aikka took her hand and ran away from Keiran. They ran back through the dark halls and stopped outside her door. The sound of her crying and the tears falling from her eyes were like arrows shot into his heart. "Aikka…", she sobbed. The more she cried the tighter he embraced her. Placing his head on hers he could smell the sweet scent of her hair. "Shh… it's alright. I am here.", he whispered and stroke her head. Eva buried herself in his chest and cried. He wiped away her tears and caressed her cheeks with his gentle hands while giving her a warm smile. "Forgive me, I shouldn't have left you…".

"It's not your fault… I'm sorry."

"You have nothing to apologize for, it was I who should have listen to you."

"Aikka…"

"Y, your clothes…", he said and blushed.

Eva looked at herself and realized that she was only wearing her underwear! Aikka removed his arms so she could get dressed. She ran quickly back to her room and put something decent on. When she opened up the door again she could see him standing there and smile. "Thank you… for s, saving me."

"The pleasure was all mine. I must be heading back. They are waiting for me", he bowed and left.

When he headed back to the council meeting and he didn't get a very warm welcome. The council frowned at him, but didn't say a word. Instead his fencing master, Canaan, pulled out a chair and made a sign telling him to sit down. The king cleared his throat and sat down on his chair. He gave everybody at the council a piece of paper with a small picture of a nouraisian girl on it. Everybody startled at the picture and looked at the king with a surprised look. Aikka on the other hand blushed, but turned the picture around and looked over to the king. "May I ask w, who this is?", he asked the king. "That, my son… is your fiancée, princess Marielle from the northern kingdom." He could believe what his father just said. Fiancée! Oh no! Then that must mean that she is the one he was getting married to! Looking shocked at his father; his fencing master picked up the picture and looked at it as well. "T, this is the princess?". King Lao nodded and looked at Aikka with a serious face.

"She will arrive at the gate tomorrow and you, my son, will take her here to the palace."

"But father! This is all too sudden! I-"

"You shall take her to the palace and that is final! Do you understand?"

"Yes…"

And with that the council meeting was over. Everybody left the room expect for the prince. He still sat on the chair slightly shocked. Canaan noticed the expression on his face and sat down next to him. "My prince, tell me, what is on your mind?"

"If you were me, Canaan, what would you do?"

"What do you mean?"

"I cannot marry the princess! I don't even know her!"

"Give the princess a chance, my prince. You cannot reject someone before you know how they are like. She might even become likable for you, my prince."

Canaan was right. He should at least give her a chance. Maybe she isn't as bad as he thinks. She may be kind, sweet and loving like a princess should be, but even though the princess sounded perfect, it was something inside him telling him not to marry her. All these feelings were so confusing, but come to think of it he had to marry someone one day! As the prince of Nouraisia and being an only child, without marrying someone who would be the next heir to the kingdom after him?

"Hmm… yes, maybe you are right, but I want to marry someone I love, not someone I was promised to marry by the time I was born!"

"But prince, who else do you intend to marry?"

"I don't know…"

He stood up from his chair and left his fencing master sitting by himself in the dark room_. "Be careful, my prince. It is not the earth girl who will save us.",_he thought as he watched the prince walk out.

**TO BE CONTINUED…**

* * *

><p><strong>AN:  
>Just wanted to thank all my readers and all the sweet reviews! :') keep reading! I'm working on the tenth chapter already so stay tuned and please review! <strong>


	10. Chapter 10: Broken to pieces

****

**A/N:**  
><strong>Yo! I'm back on track! Hehe…Sorry if you had to wait so long, but I've just been busy a lot the past few weeks! Anyways, just think of this as an early gift for christmas! Extra-long and full of hilarious moments, drama and romance ~ please review!<strong>

* * *

><p><strong>CHAPTER 10<strong>

"What do you mean he's sick?"

"Sophie, leave your brother alone. Go and play with your dolls instead."

"But, mom!"

"Shh!"

_"That idiot isn't sick! He's just faking it because he doesn't want to help grandpa… lazy pig!"_

It's a good thing her mom didn't hear that or else she would have thrown her out the woods! Sophie marched back to her room sulking. It was a beautiful day on the country, the sun shone, the birds chirped and you could smell the fresh air blowing through the sparkling windows, but of course like any other teenager, Alan was lazy as a pig. He didn't even lift a finger to help his grandparents! This weekend was supposed to be fun, since they were visiting the old folks again. Mrs. Flynn was about to wake him brutally up, but hearing him yawning made her go back to the kitchen again ignoring him. Sooner or later he had to wake up!

Old grandpa Joe poured some ice cold water in his rusty old bucket and made his way to Alan's room. He stopped at the edge of his bed and stared amusing at his grandson. "GOOD MORNING SUNSHINE!", he yelled before throwing the whole bucket over the bed causing him to scream like a girl and wriggle like a fish outside water! "Nice to see you're up, sonny boy! Don't try to shirk away this time or else I'll just have to get a new bucket again!".

"I, I'm up! I'm up!"

"That's my boy!"

He really didn't have much of a choice and got up. Otherwise his grandpa would throw another bucket over him making him soak wet again. While changing into his new yellow t-shirt with a smiley on, he looked out the window up to the sky. On the way to the kitchen he came across his sister again. "Good morning, Alan…", she glared at him. Ignoring his sister he continued to walk to the kitchen. There were many pictures hanging on the plain brown wall in the hall.

"Hey, is that dad?", he laughed while pointing at a picture of a bald toothless boy in a round red frame. He wiped of the smile off his face before stepping in the kitchen. The smell of delicious pancakes was mouthwatering. Only the look of them was tempting, for Alan they were like sirens calling "Eat me! Eat me!"

A huge tummy blocked his view and pushed his forehead keeping him away from the tasty treats! "Uncle Teddy! Let me through!"

"Sorry, boy. But your mother gave me strict orders not to let'cha have a single bite, before you'd help the old folks!"

His uncle pushed him out the door, but he glued himself to the door. "Ouhg, what a great start on a day! I bet Eva's having it so much better.", Alan thought as he walked out to the old folks.

* * *

><p>Back in Nouraisia the whole royal staff was busy making sure everything was on its place before the princess arrived. It was a very important day both for the royal family and the entire kingdom! Everything had to be perfect, at least enough to impress her! The maids helped the guards rolling down a long red carpet in front of where the princess's carriage would stop. When they finished the preparations they divided themselves in two long rows waiting patiently for the princess. "Is everything ready?", the head maid asked them. Every maid nodded except for one. The head maid came closer and looked worried at her. "What is missing?"<p>

"T, the prince, Madame. He is not here!"

"What! Find him, quickly!"

While the maid rushed back into the palace, the head maid ran over to the prince's fencing master, Canaan, asking for help looking for the prince. He got up immediately from his chair and went looking for the prince, but he was nowhere to be found! Where could he possibly go in a situation like this, now that the princess was arriving? He looked everywhere, in every nook and corner, but the prince was gone! Oh no! Canaan had to find him quickly or else the king would kill him! Running through the empty halls again this time he came across Eva!

She looked at him running like a torpedo towards her and was about to move to the side since it looked like he was in a hurry. He shook her shoulders while bombing her with confusing questions. When he finally let her go she couldn't answer because all the dizziness. She pulled herself together and began looking for the prince too, but after looking a while she couldn't find him! "Hmm… if I were Aikka, where would I hide?", she thought, then she realized a place nobody would bother looking around! She ran to the back of the palace into the garden and there he was, under a tree hiding his face between his knees.

Eva smiled and sat down beside him. He could hear her soft voice calling his name while she shook his shoulders. Aikka looked up and found her sweet smiling face. By the look on his face, she could tell that something wasn't right. She was about to ask him if something was wrong when she heard his fencing master calling for him.

"Prince Aikka! There you are! Come with me quickly!". Canaan pulled his white shirt and dragged him with him. Soon they were on their way back where the king and queen were waiting for him. She thought it was kind of weird, why did they need to hurry up? It wasn't like they had something important to do, right? A man in black leather jacket and brown jeans were walking towards her along with two other guys in green and yellow overalls. The man had black shades and smiled as he and the two others were walking. "Hey, little mouse! We're going out, do you want to come?"

"I don't know… I kinda want to stay here…"

"Are you sure?"

"Yeah."

"Alright. Suite for yourself, but you're gonna miss all the fun!"

"Where are you guys going anyway?"

"We're going to the market first. Then we're going to some kind of theater Koji found later!"

"Theater? Sounds like fun, could you guys pick me up later? I want to see the play too!"

"Yeah, sure!", Rick said and waved bye to her before making their way to the market.

Nouraisa was a big planet. Over two times bigger than earth! All the surroundings reminded them about the desert and the people looked like Arabians and wore almost the same clothes as them. The marked provided the finest clothes of silk, wool, and cotton and the food was absolutely remarkable! It's told that nouraisians have one of the finest kinds of foods in the entire galaxy and that's not surprising since the food is in different colors and wonderful tastes! Now the guys were really gonna enjoy their vacation! As they were walking through the market, they split up in two groups, Stan and Koji and Rick for himself.

Rick was looking for something for himself. Even though he actually was out looking for a gift for his girlfriend, he thought that if he was in the market, he might as well get something he liked for once! As for Stan and Koji, they were looking for some gadgets and other stuff the ship needed!

"Hey, Stan! Look at that shop! Let's go over there!", Koji said and pointed at a tall orange triangle building. The shop was so tall it looked like a pyramid with its sharp tip on top. The guys walked over to the shop without noticing the warning sign saying: "Do not enter!". When they were walked in everything seemed quiet. Too quiet.

Everything was dark and dusty and looked like a haunted house. "Hmm… this doesn't look right. There's supposed to be some kind of-", Koji said before a hand suddenly covered his mouth and dragged him away! Stan just shook his head and walked out the store without noticing that Koji wasn't with him anymore! He began walking through the market again and stopped near some kind of café. While waiting for a waiter to come show him where "they" could sit, he felt like something was missing. When the waiter finally came and asked what he wanted to drink Stan ordered some kind of coffee for two persons. The waiter raised a brow and asked him who the other cup was for. "What do you mean? It's for my partner, Ko-". He turned around and realized that his partner wasn't with him anymore! Stan got up from his chair and ran back to where he walked looking for Koji, but he couldn't find him anywhere! _"Oh, no! This is bad! What to do? What to do!"_, he thought and tried to look again.

Stan wasn't the only one in trouble, back at the palace king Lao almost exploded when he heard the prince was missing! But luckily for him he made it in time just before the princess arrived. His fencing master breathed out and he could feel his heart almost jump out his chest when the king glared at him. The prince could do anything, but just sitting down on a small painful chair waiting for his _"fiancée"_to come. It didn't take long before everybody could hear the sound of horses running towards the palace.

An amazing carriage in white and gold approached the palace and stopped perfectly outside the gates. Like all the other guards, maids and king and queen, Aikka couldn't hold his breath! He was a bit excited to finally meet her, but at the same time afraid of what was going to happen next! In his heart, he knew that it belonged to someone else.

A tall man in beige shirt and sharp round hat opened the carriage and out came the princess. Everybody startled at her. She was absolutely gorgeous! The princess wore a beautiful strapless dress in light pink floral patterns with ruffles on the bottom. It matched her brown eyes, long curls and silver tiara on her head. Aikka could feel his heart beating faster, but not in the same way when he was with Eva. This time he was more nervous than ever! The maids stood as stiff as statues and lined up in two rows welcoming her. The princess smiled as she walked through the lines and on her way to the royal family. And of course the king and queen gave her a warm welcoming.

"Princess Marielle! Welcome to our kingdom!", the king smiled and gave her a big bear hug as if she was one of his daughters.

On the other side, the queen didn't give her a hug like she did with Eva, but just smiled at her instead and of course welcomed her.

"Oh, your majesties! I am so honored to finally meet you!"

"We do too as well.", queen Nori said and walked over to the prince.

The prince's fencing master had to push him closer to the princess so he could welcome her, but Aikka refused to move. She saw that he was shaking his head and didn't want to greet her, but she just smiled at him since she kind of understood him.

"You must be the prince I presume?", she asked as she walked closer to him. He nodded, but didn't look her in the eye. "Prince Aikka!", the king yelled and frowned at him. He knew that he didn't have much of a choice and pulled himself together. Besides, she was new here and it wasn't her fault he didn't want to give her a warm welcoming. With that he swallowed his pride and suddenly became friendlier and courteous. "Please forgive me for the rough reception. Yes, I am prince Aikka and welcome to Nouraisia…", he said and bowed.

When he bowed the princess's face suddenly lighten up! "Thank you. I am not so familiar here, would you care to show me around the palace, prince Aikka?", she asked and smiled. Aikka looked at his parents and sighed. He forced a smile on his face and reached out a hand and began showing her around the palace. Soon they were far away from his parents and the others. His hands were getting all sweaty and he tried to try wiping it off, but his hands were locked between the princesses' like an animal being cathed in a trap! Despite the fact that he was nervous and shaking and sweating, the princess ignored it and just kept smiling. "Is there something bothering you, prince Aikka?"

"Who, me? No, no, no…"

"Are you sure?"

"Yes, I am absolutely fine. There is nothing wrong.", he said and kept walking.

Even though he told her he was fine, she could feel that something was wrong. She tried to make eye contact with him, but he just ignored her. They kept walking around the palace, but after a while they stopped outside her room. The room looked similar to Eva's room, but unlike here's the princesses' room was twice as big as Aikka and Eva's room together! Her room was almost all in white and gold. There were long white curtains hanging down from the window, a light pink dressing table with a heart shaped mirror and a gigantic king sized bed! "Wow! Who did this? Was it you?"

"Me?"

"Yes, this is amazing!"

"Thank you, but it is not me you must thank, it was the maids."

"Oh… yes, certainly! I must speak with them right away!"

"Do as you wish, but forgive. I must leave now. I have a friend I must take care of."

"A friend you say?", she asked and raised a brow as she walked closer to him.

"Yes, an old friend of mine."

"May I ask who this friend of yours is?"

"Her name is E…"

"E?"

"Eva. And is one of my best friends."

"Wha-"

The princess was about to say something, but the prince left her looking both confused and somehow a bit jealous! _"How rude! How could he just leave me like that?",_she thought for herself and walked into the room sulking. By the same time she sat down on the dressing table, someone knocked on the door! It was the guards carrying her loads of bags! When the maids opened the doors her pet, Feline, ran in as if she'd never seen the princess before!

"Feline! There you are, sweetie!", the princess said and bent down to pick her up. She was the princess's most precious thing in the whole world! Feline looked like a small version of a cat together with her crystal white fur, fluffy ears and heart shaped nose, everybody was charmed by only looking at her!

"Thank you so much for taking care of not only my cat, but this room too!", the princess said and turned around to the maids smiling.

"Thank you, your highness. If there is anything you need. Please let us now. We want to make sure everything is perfect!"

"I appreciate your kindness, but for now I am very satisfied. You may leave now."

"As you wish, princess."

The smile on her face faded away like the sand at the beach being erased away by the touch of water. Her grip around Feline became tighter and tighter as she walked to the window beside the bed. Feline could feel her heartbeat and she knew that something was bothering her, but as a pet, she couldn't tell her anything! If she couldn't talk, she could at least make a sound telling her that she was about to become to potato mash with all her squishing! Finally she put her down on the floor and looked out to window. Marielle sighed and mumbled something about Aikka. _"What could he possibly be more interested in? That girl or me?",_she thought as she twirled a lock of her brown hair around her finger.

While the princess sulked over him in her room, Aikka was making his way back to Eva. She must have been confused and worried about why he was in such a hurry. Besides he hasn't spent time with her since what happened between her and Keiran! And beneath that he didn't even tell her about the princess yet! He really wanted to tell her, but by the time he got there where she sat and waited, she was gone! "Eva?".

"Prince Aikka?"

Aikka turned around and found his mother, queen Nori, looking puzzled at him. "Mother?"

"What are you doing here? Are you not supposed to accompany the princess?"

"Yes, but I wanted to spend time with E, Eva instead and I cannot seem to find her!"

"Eva? I saw her one moment ago running towards the town. I wonder why she was in such a hurry. Hmm… let's not think about that, I am sure she will come back later."

"I hope so.", Aikka sighed and looked a bit disappointed. Just when he was about to tell her about the princess, she had to leave. He sat under a tree using it as a shelter from the pouring rain. _"Why did she run away? There is so much I want to tell her…"._

* * *

><p>A few moments ago before Aikka came; Eva sat still under the tree listening to music with her pink mp3-player. Suddenly the bright clouds turned into a darker shade of black and a flash of lightning howled in the skies! Raindrops fell from the skies hitting the tip of her nose <em>"It's raining, huh?",<em>she thought and raised her hand to catching the water drops. When she tilted her head down she could see a small gleam of two people running towards her. They were screaming her name as loud as they could and she stood up right away. "Eva! Eva!"

"Rick? Stan? What's going on?"

Both of them looked like they ran a marathon because of all the panting and puffing sounds they were making. "Guys! What happened?"

"K, koj-"

"Huh?"

"Koje-"

"Couch?"

"Koj-!"

"Coat?"

"KOJ-!"

"Of for the love of- SPEAK ENGLISH!"

"KOJI FOR CRYING IT OUT LOUD!"

After finally realizing what they meant, her eyes popped up as she gasped. "Koji? W, what happened? Where is he!"

"That's what we were going to ask you! Have you seen him?"

"No? I thought he was with you guys?"

"He was, but now he's gone!"

"Where did you last see him, Stan?"

"Well, we kinda went to an empty store and all of a sudden he disappeared!"

"What? We gotta find him! Rick!"

"That's the problem. We don't know where he is!"

"Well, don't' just stand there! C'mon let's go find him!", she yelled and waved to the guys.

"Oh, seriously? I just saved my hair from the rain!", Stan complained and tried to fix his hair.

"Stop whining and move your butt! What's more important? Your hair or your partner?"

"Alright, alright. I'm coming!"

Before they knew it they were standing in the middle of the market. All the shops were closed and there weren't a single stand outside! Everything looked dead and gone, but it didn't hinder them to continue looking for him! They screamed and yelled his name as loud as they could, but nobody answered. Where could he be? What happened to him? What if something bad happened to him? What if he's dead already? "Oh no, this is my entire fault! I should have never left him!", Stan blamed himself and tear his spiky hair. Rick clapped his back and shook his head. "It's not your fault, buddy. Let's go back before it gets dark. I'm sure we'll find him tomorrow.".

"Eva! Let's go back! It's no use trying to look for him in the dark! C'mon!"

"I'm coming. I'm just gonna-", she stopped. She picked up a piece of dark green sheet outside a dark vicious alley. Only the look and smell of it told her that this could be a piece of Koji's overall! It was tempting to check the place out, but she knew better and put it in her pocket. She walked to Rick and Stan and went back to the palace, but for each step she took she looked back making sure that if somebody stepped out the alley she would reveal the person that took her pal! _"I have check it out tomorrow!",_she thought.

"Aikka?"

When she came back she saw the prince sleeping peacefully under the tree. She came up closer to him and shook carefully his right shoulder, but no reaction! _"Wonder why he's sleeping here? He must have been waiting for me…?", _she thought and stroke his cheek. His skin was soft as a pillow and she could feel the warmth of his cheek flowing through her whole body. She giggled and smiled at his sleepy face. Only the look of his face melted her heart like butter. "Aikka…". Just then she thought of all the good memories she shared with him. All of a sudden her whole face was in all shades of red! She shook the redness away repeatedly in a circle motion. Suddenly she heard an old man's voice calling for someone and heavy footsteps were running fast towards her!

"Prince Aikka? Is that you?", a deep voice asked from the halls.

Eva crawled behind the tree hiding! _"Oh snap! I hope he didn't see me!",_she prayed. Luckily the man didn't see her, but she could see him. It was Canaan! He frowned at the prince and sighed before waking him up by shaking him like a piece of jelly! "Huh- wha, who…?", Aikka mumbled before rubbing his eyes and looked puzzled at his fencing master.

"Wake up, prince. You cannot possibly lay down here sleeping!"

"Huh? Canaan?"

"Come along, prince. I will take you back to your room.", he said and lift him up.

"Wait I-"

Before he could say anything, his fencing master pulled him along making their way to his room. When they left Eva came up from the tree. She looked up to the moon and thought for herself that it was time for her to sleep too. While she was walking to her room, she could hear some maids giggling and whispering secrets in each other's ears. When she looked at them with a raised brow they stopped giggling and went back to their jobs. "Ok… and I thought I was the weird one…", she thought and stepped in to her room. She took her shirt and pulled off her pants and crawled in her bed. After tucking herself in she tried to figure out a plan finding Koji. Moments ago she found a piece of his overall, so that must mean he's just nearby! "Must check it out t… tomorrow…", she yawned and closed her eyes.

* * *

><p>Someone knocked on the door. The princess pulled up her pink sleeping mask with white laces and a red ribbon on top and sat up properly and said: "You may come in." The maids came in with a huge stack of clothes!<p>

"Good morning, your highness.", they greeted her and bowed. They lined up in two rows each one with an item in their hand. One maid had a basket full of fragrant soaps and rose petals in it, another one had a tray with freshly baked bread on it and the third maid had some gorgeous dresses in her hand. "Thank you ladies. I appreciate your kindness.", she said and looked delighted at the breakfast. After she finished eating up her breakfast, she got dressed in one of the kingdom's finest dresses! She wore a Cache dress in light yellow silk with white straps and bow around the waist. Like any other girl in the galaxy, she asked the maids how she looked.

"You look lovely, your highness."

"Thank you."

She waked over a small white basket finding her sleepy little kitten inside. Feline purred and brushed her whiskers as the princess picked her carefully up. Marielle stroke her silky fur while she kept purring sweetly. A maid in a white frilly dress told her that the king was waiting for her in the throne room. The other maids opened the door for her and she made her way to the room. It echoed for each step she took through the gigantic halls. Only the look of the two guards outside the throne room made her very nervous. And yes, even a princess can be nervous too! "Who goes there?", one of the guards asked.

"Princess Marielle. The king has requested for me."

They took off their hats and bowed to her before letting her in. A deep, but kind voice welcomed her as she stepped gracefully in. Soon she stood in the middle of the room, around her was the royal councils and in front of her was the king and queen themselves. Her legs became like jelly as the king made his way down from his throne. The king gave her a big hug before greeting her warmly. Again the queen didn't greet her, but only sat and watched her from her throne. Marielle swallowed her spit and walked over to a chair the servants prepared for her. She sat down and asked them why they wanted her to come.

"I wanted you to come so we could speak with you about your marriage. Have you met my son?"

"Yes, your majesty. He is kind and quite gentle towards me."

"That's good to hear. Perhaps you should spend more time with him today! Both of you must get to know each other and I am sure you will get quite well along with him."

"Real- I mean, thank you, your majesty!"

"You may leave now."

Marielle left the room jumping of joy and couldn't be happier! Getting to know the prince wasn't going to be easy, but she was sure that if he noticed her charming and sweet personality, she could win him over like piece of cake! Even though she was overjoyed, she maintained calm. While waving her dress and stroking her brown locks, she walked gracefully over to Aikka's room humming a sweet melody. She knocked on his door, but nobody answered. "Prince? Are you in there?", she asked. Again and again she knocked, but still no reaction!

Where could the prince possibly be at a moment like this? Could he be outside training with Canaan? Or maybe he was with that "Eva" again? Marielle exploded like a volcano! But why was she so angry? It wasn't like Eva did anything to her, but every time she thought of her; something made her so angry she could kill a horse! What was more important to him? Her, the princess, his fiancée, his next to be wife or that irritating rat of a friend of his? She calmed down and began walking in the halls again. What she didn't know was that Eva was right in the end of the hall!

Quite as a mouse, she sneaked slowly towards the royal library. Of course it wasn't dangerous to go to a library and somehow she looked very stupid sneaking around, but she didn't want to draw too much attention either! She was looking for a map over the market, where Koji was kidnapped. As she stepped in she could hear a familiar voice asking her what she was doing.

"Eva, what are you doing here?"

"Y, your majesty! I was… ehm-", she looked at a bushy old plant. "Looking for something to... eat, yeah eat! Hehe…"

"Something to eat? At a library? Well, that's odd. Perhaps you should find something at the kitchen instead?"

"Yes, but I was looking for something in the library too."

"Oh, do tell me what you are looking for. Maybe I can be in help?"

"That's to kind of you, your majesty, but I'm sure I can find it myself."

"Rubbish! Come along, we will find whatever you are looking for!"

The queen dragged her with her and stepped into the gigantic library! There were books, pictures, paintings, old swords and sculptures everywhere! A lady in a long blue dress with glasses bowed to the queen and asked her if there was something she looked for. Nori shook her head and introduced Eva to the librarian instead, making a sign that it was her who was looking for something.

"How may I help you?"

"Do you have any maps?"

"Maps? Yes, indeed, but could you be more specific?"

"I'm looking for a map over the city, specially over the market."

"The market? Why do you need that?", the queen asked.

They sat down around a squared table and Eva began explaining. While she explained both the librarian and queen Nori startled at each word coming out of her mouth. After she explained, they were so surprised they couldn't even talk!

"That's awful!"

"Indeed! But do not worry; we will help you find your friend!"

All three stood up and began looking for the map. After a while they found it between two dusty old books on a half broken bookshelf. The map was old and dusty as well, but still very handy! There were many signs and drawings Eva couldn't understand, but luckily for her the queen was there and helped her translating the script. As soon as they were done, Eva bowed and thanked before leaving out to the garden trying to remember what the queen told her. In the garden she sat down on a big grey rock and read the map.

Back at the hall, the princess was still looking for Aikka, but with no luck. She stopped and sighed, right now she just wanted to give up, but her feet's didn't let her stop and kept walking. The princess stroke Feline's silky fur and felt the warmth flowing through her fingers. Only the look of her sleepy face made Marielle smile and she calmed down by the sound of her purring.

Two guards were struggling to carry a heavy blue vase with flower patters on it towards the throne room, but all of a sudden one of them slipped and the vase broke causing the princess to jump back! Suddenly Feline jumped out of her hands and run in fear of the noise towards the garden! "FELINE!", Marielle shouted after her. "COME BACK! FELINE!"

But Feline didn't listen and kept on running. Soon she arrived at the garden and collapsed right beside a certain someone! Eva could feel something next to her right leg. Something hairy and furry! First she thought it was her leg, but that's impossible! She didn't have so much hair, did she? When she looked downa furry little white creature was breathing heavily as if it came back from a war! "Hey, little one! Where did you come from?", she asked and picked her up. Feline purred as she gently stroke her soft fur. Eva was about to put her down when she heard a worried voice calling for someone! "Hey, you! Have you seen a- FELINE!", she said before running like a mother bear towards her sweet little cub! Turns out it was a small kitten and it belonged to her!

"Is this your cat?", Eva asked and laughed a bit.

"Yes, it is! Thank you for finding her!", Marielle said and bowed.

"Well, it was actually her who found me. I saw her collapsed right beside me!"

"Thank you anyways, miss…?"

"Eva. My name is Eva.", she said and shook her hand.

"Eva?"

Marielle took one step back and startled at her. She couldn't believe it! Was this the same girl Aikka was talking about? She was the one who saved her cat? Was she that Eva? Looking shocked at her; Eva raised a brow and asked her: "Are you okay?" The princess got back to reality and saw her looking confused at her.

"You look kinda shocked. Is something wrong?"

"No, no, no! Don't misunderstand. It is just that I have never seen you here before. You are not a nouraisian, are you?"

"No, I'm actually a human."

"A human? Oh, I have heard of you humans before! Please, do tell me more about yourself!", Marielle said and sat down on a rock right next to Eva.

"Well, I like flying and hanging out with my friends. What do you like to do?"

"Me? I enjoy reading books, try out gorgeous dresses and paint!"

"Hmm… that sounds… great, I think. What's your name?"

"I am princess Marielle from the northern kingdom of Nouraisia. Tell me, Eva. What brings you to Nouraisia?"

"I have an old friend of mine who invited me to come over for a visit. And he kinda promised me so, he actually didn't have a choice! Haha.."

_"She must be talking about the prince!",_Marielle thought and grinned. "Who is this friend of yours?"

"It's Aikka."

Just hearing her saying his name made her angry and maybe a bit jealous! Why could she say his name without using his formal title? "The prince?", she asked after calming down.

"Yeah. Why? Do you know him?"

"Why of course I do! He is also a close friend of mine!", she lied.

"A close friend? How did you guys know each other?"

"We met as small children and got along quite well! Afterwards we became more and more bonded to one another and now I couldn't be happier!"

"Really? Why?"

Marielle's grin became wider and wider for each word! When she asked her why, she showed off her sparkling sapphire ring with a round shaped diamond in the middle causing to blend Eva's eyes with its shimmering stones! "My fiancée gave it to me! Isn't it lovely?", she exaggerated.

"You're getting married?"

"Yes, indeed!"

"Wow! That's great! Who's the lucky one?"

"You know, Eva. As a princess you must marry a prince!"

"A pri- who are you talking about?", she asked and somehow she kind of knew who she meant!

"Oh, silly me! I must have forgotten to tell you about the wedding! Have you heard about it yet?"

"The wedding?"

"Yes, the prince and I are getting married!"

An awkward silence lied between them both and none of them said a word till Eva's jaw dropped to the ground and her eyes were bigger than bowling balls. She was speechless; her face was whiter than a chalk as if she'd just seen a ghost. Getting married!

"Excuse me, what did you say?"

"Yes, Aikka and I were promised each other since the moment we were born! We intend to have the wedding next week already! You must come, it would be so lovely! We are going to have fantastic decorations, delicious food and I am going to wear a beautiful dress in white and gold! I will make you my maid in honor!", Marielle giggled and waved her ring in front of her face repeatedly!

Her heart broke into thousand pieces. The whole world stood still and not a single word came out of her mouth. It was like a million knives had been thrown right into her heart! She could feel tears floating up in the corner of her eyes and this time it wasn't happy tears. "Sorry, but I have to go now…"

She ran away with her eyes full of tears! She stopped and sat down in a corner hiding her face between her legs and sobbed loudly. The pain was unbearable and she couldn't describe how hurt she was! It was like a wound that couldn't be healed! As she sobbed she didn't notice that Keiran was behind a wall listening to her crying!

"_Why? Why!"_, she asked herself as the tears ran down her cheeks. _"Why didn't he tell me? Why didn't he tell me that he was getting married? I thought I was his friend! Friends aren't supposed to keep secrets from each other! Aikka! You idiot! I HATE YOU!". _Only the thoughts of him made the pain even worse! The wound in her heart grew bigger and bigger. She really trusted him, but now she knew that she couldn't trust him anymore!

How would she face him after this? Would she run away and hide or talk with him about it? On the second thought, why was she so upset? It wasn't like she liked him did she? They were just friends, right? _"No, it can't be! I can't like him! He's a prince and I'm just an ordinary girl from another planet! Besides if I did like him and he knew it, we wouldn't stand a chance!". _She wiped off her tears and stood up trying to remind herself that this wasn't the right moment to cry! Koji was missing and finding him was more important than her love for Aikka!

* * *

><p><strong>AN:  
>Enjoyed this chapter? Hope so! Please review and if you want to know what happens next stay tuned ~<strong>


	11. Chapter 11: Mission: Rescue Koji

**A/N:**  
><strong>Hey, guys! Long time no see! How are you? Sorry again, for making you wait so long for this chapter! Like before or actually always, I've just been very busy lately, so yeah… enough chitchat! Let's go on with this chapter already, right? Hehehe… well, as promised here it is! Longer and more dramatic, I think? Too-de-loo ~<br>**

* * *

><p><strong>CHAPTER 11<strong>

In a dark abounded alley in the center of the market, Koji, the mechanic, was hold as a hostage of an evil and cruel nouraisian man. Just a few days ago everything seemed fine and peaceful, but when he got abducted everything became dark. The man had a reputation for being mercy less and everybody feared him. Only the look of his face was despicable! A deep wounded scar scattered from his left eye to the corner of his mouth. Unlike most of nouraisians, his eyes were bloody red like a rose. His intentions were horrible and he could kill someone in a blink of an eye, but luckily for Koji, he had other plans.

"Let me go!", Koji shouted and tried to untie the rope around his hands.

"Silence, human! Do not dare to ruin my plans or else you won't live to see the sunrise!", the man threaten him with a hard brown whip.

A tall nouraisian in black and yellow came in trembling and fell down on his knees. "Thoron, my Lord, your carriage has arrived.", he announced as he kissed his ruby ring on his middle finger. Thoron, the terrifying man, put his flaming red cape on and dragged Koji with him after his neck! His grip was so tight he couldn't breathe! Struggling for his freedom, Koji fought and tried to hold on to something before being dragged away like a little lamb ready to get sloughed! The carriage was black as a crow and had tiny windows only letting small gleams of light through. "Where are you taking me?", Koji yelled while being forced into the carriage.

"If you don't stop speaking, I will feed you to the lions!"

"Let go of me, you monster!"

When he finally let go of his hands, he dropped to the floor hitting his head! A small pellet screaming out of pain and was as red as a tomato! Trying to reduce the pain he got up and looked out the tiny window hoping for his friends to come and save him before it was too late! Who knows what plans Thoron and what the results would come out if they became fulfilled! _"Eva, Rick, Stan. Hurry! Find me quickly!"_

But finding a friend who's gone missing wasn't that easy. It's like looking for a needle in a haystack! Despite the fact that Nouraisia was twice as big as earth, Eva was determent to find him no matter what! Come to think of it, without Koji, how's she supposed to get home? Flying on a giant cow? 

The thought of getting back home was made the searching more intense and important than ever! She knew that this demanded more than one people to handle. First she needed back up in case she got kidnapped too, but who could help her? _"Gotta find Rick! I'm sure he'll help me!"_, she thought.

Luckily for her, she found him right away and told him her plan. "Rick, look what I found yesterday! Do you think this could be Koji's?", she asked and showed him the piece of what she thought was his clothing.

"Hmm… It's hard to tell. Let's show it to Stan. Maybe he'll recognize it!", he suggested.

Both went looking for Stan and found him sitting on a rock with a blue book in his hand while looking amused at it. "STAN!", Eva and Rick shouted. "H- WHOAAA!", he screamed surprised before falling down to the ground! When Rick and Eva finally got there some sort of magazine with a lady in underwear on it, fell down from his book. "Hey, what's this?"

"Ah, ah- t, that's just… ah, something for science! Yeah science!", he said and grabbed it back.

"Stan, you naughty little boy! Hahaha…"

Stan's face was redder than the lava in a volcano and it looked like he was about to explode of embarrassment! White smoke flew out through his ears and Eva couldn't help but laughing and laughing!

"I, it's not funny, guys!"

"Hahaha… whatever you say, buddy!"

"What do you want anyway?"

"I found this yesterday, do you think its Koji's?"

"Yes! That's definitely his! But where did you find it?"

"Nearby an alley when we were looking for him yesterday! I thought maybe we could try looking for him there!", she suggested and pulled out the map in her pocket.

"Look at this map. It's a map over the entire city!"

"There's the shop where he got kidnapped, but where's the alley on the map? I can't see it."

"That's the problem, the alley isn't located on the map, but I think I know where we should look for him! Let's go!"

She folded the map and put it back in her pocket before leaving to search for Koji again with Rick and Stan. _"Let's just hope he's not dead yet…",_she thought looking worried.

* * *

><p>As they were running towards the market, they passed the long hall where the prince was walking too as well, but this time he wasn't on duty. He was actually looking for Eva, but of course, he didn't know where she was. Trying to find her, he asked everyone he met on the way, the maids, the guards and even his fencing master! <p>

But there were no signs of her! Left in confusion and disappointment he sat down under a tree in the garden wondering where she could be. All of a sudden a familiar hand was leaning on his shoulder causing him to jump surprised! "WHAA!", he screamed.

"Easy, your highness. It's only me, your friend, Keiran."

"Keiran?"

"May I sit beside you?", he asked and gave Aikka a friendly smile.

Even though he seemed friendly and innocent, Aikka could still feel anger in his heart after what he did to Eva, but because he was his childhood friend, he had forgiven him. Keiran could tell by the look on his face that something bothered him.

"Is there something wrong, my friend?"

"I…"

"Yes?"

"Have you seen… Eva?", he asked without making eye contact since it was kind of embarrassing.

"Eva?"

"Yes."

"Hmm… I saw her yesterday sitting around a corner...". Aikka's eyes widen. "… sobbing and crying."

"CRYING? Why was she crying?"

"I do not know, but for some reason she seemed extremely sad. I couldn't do anything, but just watch hertears run down her cheeks."

A knife hit Aikka's heart as he imagined her crying! The pain in his heart grew bigger as the images of Eva sobbing repeatedly flew through his mind. _"How could you make her cry again, Aikka! You promised you'd take care of her! Why didn't you tell her about Marielle before she got hurt!"_, he thought and tightened his fist.

"Forgive me, my friend, but I must find her!"

"Oh? Why is that?"

"This is an important matter between me and her!"

Keiran nodded before watching his best friend running away again looking for the love of his life. Even though Aikka didn't know that Kerian understood his feelings, he was still loyal towards him. Of course, after what he did to Eva, made Aikka mistrust him a bit, but since he was his most trusted friend, he forgave him.

As the prince was looking for her through the entire palace, the three friends were still searching for Koji. They asked every person they met in the market, but with no luck! Few hours later they were incredibly tired of looking! Their feet's hurt from all the running, their tummies growled from hunger, and all the confusion with the map made them dizzy! They were so dizzy they could collapse any time!

"I can't take it anymore! If I take one more step, I'm gonna die!", Stan complained.

"You're not the only one… ugh…", Rick sighed and wiped of the sweat on his forehead.

"Can we take a break, Eva?"

"No! We can't give up yet!"

"Eva… think of yourself too! Calm down, we'll find him!"

"No! How can you guys be so selfish! I know we're tired, but think of Ko-"

"Eva! Look out!", Rick shouted and pulled her against him!

Before she knew it, a black carriage passed her like the wind! The heavy footsteps of the horses clopped hard to the ground as they ran. "You have to be more careful! You could have killed yourself!"

"Rick! Look!", she shouted and pointed at the tiny window on the back of the carriage! A squared, small glass shone in the reflection of the sun! "KOJI!", she screamed and began running after the carriage!

"Eva! Wait! Where're you going!"

The carriage was too fast for her and she couldn't reach it! All of a sudden, small, black balls were dropped down from the carriage by a nourasian in red and black! The balls exploded while rolling down the way, causing Eva to fall flat on the ground! "KOJI!", she screamed once again before they disappeared in the heavy smoke!

"Eva!"

"Rick! I almost had them! I saw Koji! He was in the carriage! We have to find him!"

"No! It's enough!"

"What do you mean it's enough! We have t-"

"Stop being so reckless! Look at your knees! Let's go back before you hurt yourself again!"

"No! We can't go! I saw Koji, Rick! I'm not going till I find that carriage!", she said determined and pushedherself up.

"I have to find the carriage! I can't just give up!", she said while she limped in the same direction the carriage disappeared.

* * *

><p>Back at the palace, Aikka was still looking for her, but there were no signs of her! He looked out the window trying to figure out where she could be. She was not in the library, not in the halls, not in her room and neither was she at the garden! Where could she be? "Prince Aikka?".bHe turned around and saw a familiar face looking at him with a raised brow. "Canaan?"<p>

"Your highness, aren't you suppose to escort lady Marielle today? Your parents are expecting you to take care of her today."

"Yes, I know, but I have something else to do…"

"But my prince! Shouldn't you prioritize your fiancée first before your duties?"

"No…"

"No?"

"Forgive me, Canaan. I must go."

"But your highn-"

Before Canaan could say one more word, Aikka left again looking for Eva.

* * *

><p>"Eva! You have to stop! With those wounds you'll just get worse!", Rick shouted and tried to stop her.<p>

"I don't care, Rick!"

"Well, then I don't have any choice, but to carry you with me back to the palace!"

"Hu- Rick! Put me down! Let go of me! I'll call the cops if you don't put me down, right now!"

"Nice try, little mouse, but we're in Nouraisia now, so there's no cops here!", he said and lift her on his back.

"No, Rick, wait! Look! Is that the carriage you were talking about?", Stan asked and pointed at a raven black carriage.

Eva gasped as Rick put her down on the ground again. "That's it! Let's go! C'mon!"

When they approached the carriage, they could hear some nouraisians talking to each other on a harsh and impertinent way. The carriage was parked in a dark alley, like the one Eva saw before, when she found a piece of Koji's overall! Quiet as small mice, they lurked closer to a door the two nouraisians were guarding. "We have to get in there. Maybe Koji's inside.", she whispered.

"But how do pass those guys? They're twice as big as us."

"Here let me try.", Rick said and picked up a grey rock. He threw it only a few meters away from the guards, causing to distract them and look for intruders. When the guards stepped away from the door, all the three ran quickly to the door, opening it and began crawling on their knees.

They could hear voices in the end of the hall, but couldn't see who it was because of the dark. A small torch hang on the wall and was about to die, Eva took the chance and picked it up. As they walked through the hall, they noticed that there were many boxes of swords and other weapons with poison marks on them. Stan was so scared he could pee in his pants. "Um… guys. Maybe this isn't a good idea. Let's go back, shall we?"

"Shhh! Listen! I can hear someone talking!". She blew out the flame before all three hid behind small crates and listening...

_"You can't do that! It's against the rules!"_

_"Silence, human!"_

_"Human? That must be Koji! Oh no!",_Eva thought and gasped.

"As the master of this kingdom, I shall do whatever I want! If you dare to ruin my plans, you shall pay with your life!"

"You crazy bastard, you can't do that!"

"I have had enough patience with you! You are no longer useful! Guards, KILL HIM!"

"NOOOOOOO! STOP!", Eva shouted and came out of the crates.

"Eva! Are you nuts! What are you doing? Come back here!", Rick whispered loudly and tried to pull her back, but she shook his hand of her shoulder and walked closer towards Koji! Suddenly, two guards captured her and forced her down on her knees before handing her over to their Lord. "My Lord, this intruder has been spying on you! What shall we do with her?"

"Let go of me!"

"What's this? Another human?"

"Don't you dare touch my friend! Try touching him and I'll rip off your face!"

"Oh, am I being threatened by a human? You pathetic creature! You have no rights to speak to me that way! I shall feed you to the lions!"

She growled and spit him on his face! Thoron wiped of the spit that hit his eye and suddenly strangled her! "EVA!", Koji screamed and tried to untie the rope around his hands!

Eva choke as his grip got tighter and tighter while he pushed her to the wall! She could feel her breath strain out her lungs and the tears in her eyes exploding from both anger and surviving! No matter how much she struggled to fight against him, the closer she got to the end of her life! But no! It couldn't end this way! She couldn't just die like this! Her lungs let her breath one last time before her hands dropped to the wall! It was no use, she had to give up. Slowly she closed her eyes and she could feel her soul melting out of her body! "EVA! NO!"

Rick ran out between the crates and jumped on Thoron's back, punching his face! Finally he let go of her and she collapsed on the ground! "STAN! HURRY!", he yelled while trying to hold him back so they could escape! Stan ran as quickly as he could, picking her up before the guards caught them! He ran through the halls and out the alley, carrying an unconscious Eva between his arms! A guard knocked Rick off his back and threw him at the wall, so his master could get up, but Thoron was furious and yelled: "AFTER THEM, YOU IDIOTS! DO NOT LET THEM REACH THE PALACE!"

Stan kept running and running towards the palace, but it wasn't that easy! Some of Thoron's guards had already caught up and chased him! People looked terrified at him as if he was some kind of terrorist kidnapping an innocent little girl! Ignoring the looks, he focused on getting to the palace as quickly as possible before it was too late! Eva could die any moment now and this was really an emergency! Luckily for him the palace was only a few gleams away and he could see two guards by the gate guarding it! "HELP! HELP US!", he screamed to the guards.

The guards pointed their spears at him and asked him who he was. "It's me, Stan, friend of the prince! Please let me in! There are some crazy guys after us and they kidnapped our friends and I have a friend with me who's unconscious and needs help right away!", he tried to explain. After he explained, the guards looked confused at him before looking puzzled at each other. They pulled their hats down before answering him with a polite, but serious tone.

"Only the royal family is allowed to pass. Please forgive us, but we must ask you to bring your friend along with you and leave."

"No, please! Believe me! This is an emergency!"

But the guards didn't believe him and forced him to walk away. Suddenly they heard heavy footsteps coming closer and closer to the gate, and they could see a huge amount of men running with weapons and swords in their hands! Stan looked terrified at the guards and ran back to them. "DO YOU BELIEVE ME NOW?"

Finally they opened the gates for him and let him pass! They assembled other guards to come help them protect the gates and keep the intruders away! The alert signal was released and every guard got back to their posts and warned everybody in the palace! Swords and other weapons were thrown everywhere in the air so they could attack the intruders! While the guards protect the palace's gates, Stan ran in the halls, trying to find help! "HELP! HELP! SOMEBODY!", he screamed as loud as he could, but it looked like everybody was too busy protecting the palace, they didn't even have time to help! _"Oh no! This is not good! What do I do? What do I do? Gotta find help!", _he thought and put Eva down beside a wall. "Stay here! I'll go get some help!", he said before running away again!

**A/N:  
><strong>**Hope you liked this chapter!  
><strong>**Just so you guys know it, I'm working on the next chapter already! So stay tuned, my little rice rolls ^3^ ~**


	12. Chapter 12: Lost in the Aldegar forest

**A/N:  
>Hi! I hope you guys had a nice holiday, cuz I know I had! Hehe… just wanted to take the chance thanking you, it's so sweet receiving reviews from you guys, even though it may be a small review, it means a lot to me! So please, keep reviewing!<strong>

**Another thing, keep on reading till the end of this chapter, have a surprise for you guys!**

* * *

><p><strong>CHAPTER 12<strong>

"What are you planning to do, you creep?", Rick growled.

"I find your curiosity quite amusing, human! But it is time to let you know my plans as well, since I soon will become the master of this kingdom!"

"Master? You'll never be king of this kingdom! You're gonna destroy it!"

"Yes, indeed. Not only the kingdom, but the entire galaxy too!"

"You brute! I might have known!"

"When I become the king of this kingdom, all shall kneel!"

"How are you planning to become king? This kingdom has already an heir and with you on the throne it will certainly collapse!"

"Yes, the kingdom may have an heir, but if I kill him, I will become the new king! I shall take the king and queen as my hostages and force him to give me his crown in return!"

"What if he don't?"

"If not, I shall kill him myself and this entire nation too! Including you, pathetic humans!"

"You'll never get away with this!"

"You fool! Who will stop me? You? Pray your last prayers. Take them away!"

Those were Thoron's last words before the guards dragged them away to their doom. They threw them harshly into the carriage, causing Koji to hit his head on the floor. This time they weren't going to another secret base or hideout, the guards had been ordered to abandon them in the Aldegar forest, where wild beasts would devour their fleshes! The sound of the horses galloping made Rick anxious. Time was running out like the sand inside an hourglass. What should they do now? Nor could they escape or stop him. He had to think of something and that fast!

When they reached the forest, the guards tied them onto a tall, brown tree. "The beasts will have a feast tonight!", they laughed. Their laughter echoed as they slowly walked away. Now it was over. They had to get out of there quickly or else they would be eaten alive! At that moment, that would be the most terrible way to die.

Rick was the only one who was awake. Koji sat still, like a doll. By the look on his face, he could tell that he probably was exhausted and unconscious. But this was no time playing sweet and understanding, they're life's were literally in danger! It was no use trying to twist between the ropes, it was too thick and besides, the tree was too high to jump up and out of the ropes. Their only chance was too cut it, but his knife was in his left pocket and he couldn't reach it. Suddenly he heard loud growls behind the poison bushes! Could it be a wild beast or somebody who could help them? The noise came closer and closer. It didn't sound like his stomach, that's for sure!

"Oh, crap! We have to get out of here, now! Koji! Wake up! Koji!", he shouted and shook his body against his, since they were tied together.

"KOJI- for crying it out loud! WAKE UP, MAN! We have to get out of here! DO YOU WANT TO DIE?"

"Ha-?", he mumbled and finally woke up.

"Hurry! There's a small knife in my pocket, try to pull it out!"

"Wha- oh, ok…"

"Nice and easy now, bring it out slowl- ouch! What are you trying to do? Slice a piece of my butt?"

"Ups! Sorry! Hehehe... here it is!"

"Quick! Cut the rope and untie yourself first, then help me!"

He sliced the thick rope like a piece of cake and untied himself first, like Rick told him to do. After pulling down the rope around him, he quickly untied Rick. "Ok, what do we do now?", he panicked and looked at him with a worried, but idiotic expression.

_"What do we do now? Now that's beyond stupid, Koji! Could you think for once?",_Rick shook his head. "Look around you! What do you think we're gonna do next? Dance around like gorillas or maybe escape!"

"Oh… yeah… LET'S GET OUT'A HERE!"

Both the guys ran like they never ran before! They ran so fast, it looked like their feet's were on fire! Before they knew it, a huge snake, tiger-looking beast ran after them! The guys screamed like little girls and ran for it!

* * *

><p>By the time Stan left her, Eva woke up. Still a bit dizzy and confused, she got up and looked around. <em>"What just happened…?".<em>It felt like a huge hammer hit her head. "Eva? Is that you?", a familiar voice asked. The person embraced her s tight; she couldn't see who it was. He whispered softly in her ears that he had been looking for her everywhere. "W, wait a minute… who are you?"

"It's me, Aikka."

"Aikka?"

He helped her up while smiling as if he hasn't seen her for ages! The prince noticed that something wasn't right. Usually she would be overjoyed to see him, but this time it seemed like she was just trying to avoid him. "Eva? Is there something wrong?", he asked. But she didn't answer, she looked away instead. Why didn't she answer him? It made him a bit restless inside. Was there something he said? Before he could ask her again, the sound of high- heels were running quickly towards him and all of a sudden he was pulled away and held tightly by two warm hands. "Prince Aikka, darling! There you are! I've been looking for you!", a feminine voice said.

"Marielle? What-"

"What were you doing here… and with that girl?"

"I-"

_"Don't tell me you are trying to steal him away, you rotten girl. He's mine!",_she thought.

"Oh my, what's that on your cheek?", she gasped.

Suddenly the princess kissed his right cheek and the prince blushed furiously. Eva's eyes widen. She was absolutely speechless. Nothing was more painful than seeing the one you love in the arms of another woman! It felt like a sword hit her heart. Now she was more heartbroken than ever! She really couldn't hold back her tears this time. "S, sorry… I-", she said before running away sobbing. The prince turned around and saw her tears falling as she ran. "No! Eva! Wait! I-"

"Your highness, stay!"

"Let go of me!"

"No! Please, I am begging you!"

He had no choice but to push her off. Before he could run after her, Marielle screamed his name.

"AIKKA!"

He stopped. Nobody had ever called him by his name. When she said his name without using his formal title, he knew that this was serious. "WHY ARE YOU ALWAYS CHASING AFTER HER? You are just friends, right?"

"Marielle, stop…"

"What does she even mean to you?"

"Please, stop."

"No, I will not stop! What's more important to you? ME OR THAT GIRL? I am your fiancée, Aikka! Remember that it's me you will marry, not her! Forget her! SHE IS NOTHING BUT A PATETCHIC HUMAN!"

"STOP!", Aikka shouted as he looked back at her. Now he wasn't only angry, but furious! "DON'T YOU DARE SPEAKING OF HER THAT WAY! SHE IS THE FRIEND I CHERISH THE MOST AND I WILL NOT ALLOW YOU CALLING HER PATETHIC! DO YOU UNDERSTAND?"

And with that, the princess finally stopped. Nobody had ever talked to her that way. She was both frightened and insulted, but now she had to swallow her pride. Aikka could see small tear drops falling down her cheeks. She walked away quietly, not saying one more word. Then the prince realized that she was somehow right. Why did he care so much about Eva? What did she _really_ mean to him? She was _just_his friend, right?

_"Eva! Get a hold of yourself! Stop crying. You're making it harder!"._She wanted to stop, but she just couldn't. She dropped down on the floor sobbing between her legs. The pain was too deep. How could this happen to her? And why does she cry all the time? It wasn't like she loved him, did she?

"Eva!"

Oh no! It was Aikka! She couldn't let him see her this way. It would be so embarrassing! When she tried to run away again, Aikka grabbed her wrist and pulled her back into his arms. "No! Let me go!", she screamed while fighting against him. Even though she wanted to escape, she just buried herself deeper in his chest. He stroked her head and tried to comfort her, but hearing her sobbing was so painful for him too. One thing he never thought he would do was to hurt someone. "Eva… please don't cry.", he whispered softly.

"Why? Why didn't you tell me!"

"Tell you what?"

"WHY DIDN'T YOU TELL ME THAT YOU WERE GETTING MARRIED?", she shouted and looked at him.

"I was going to tell you, but I-"

"I trusted you, Aikka. I thought best friends didn't hide secrets from each other!"

"I'm sorry…"

"It's too late now!"

More tears were running down her cold cheeks as she looked at his face. He understood that she was disappointed and hurt. "I wish I could do something about it, but I can't...", she said and wiped off her tears, before running away again.

She ran back to her room and closed the door. Right now it was too painful to face him. Of all the worst things that could happen, why this? Rick and Koji is missing, Jordan's gone, her dad is far away and now Aikka's getting married? Why? Why?

Her phone rang. The sweet melodies of a piano rang and rang repeatedly. Who could possibly be calling in a time like this? "Hello?"

"Hey, Eva!", said a jolly voice.

"Who is this?"

"Don't you recognize my voice? It's me, Alan!"

"Alan?"

"No, it's Abdul. OF COURSE IT'S ME! Who do you expect? The queen of England?", he teased her.

"Shut up, I'm in a bad mood, right now…"

"Ouuuh… what happened? Did prince charming find another princess?"

She didn't answer and ignored his question like she never heard it. Of course, when she was in a bad mood, he had to make it worse. She hated it when he teased her like that.

"I was right? Wow, I must be a mind reader!"

"Whatever… what do you want anyway?", she asked in a moody voice.

"Nah, I was bored. So I thought I'd talk to you instead. Tell me, what happened?"

"I don't want to talk about it…"

"Oh, c'mon! I'm your best friend, right? I'm not going to tell anyone, trust me."

He was right. Right now, Alan was her most trusted friend. She knew that she could trust him, besides he doesn't often hear secrets. Eva told him what happened just a few moments ago. He gasped and sighed at each word, as if he really understood her. Somehow it was kind of weird. Usually he didn't care about those things. "Hey, don't worry about it. I'm sure you guys will be friends again.", he told her.

"I don't want to be his friend anymore…"

"Why not?"

"Because I don't care about him..."

"Then why did you cry so much over him? If you didn't care, why does it hurt every time you see him?"

"I…I don't know.", she sighed before hanging up.

"Hello? Eva?"

Alan looked at his phone. She hung up. Why would she hang up in a middle of a conversation? _"What the...?"_. He shook his head smirked. "_She must be in a really bad mood, right now…",_he thought.

* * *

><p>The princess marched determined to the throne room. Now she was furious! Her eyes were on fire. The guards who guarded the doors saw her sulky face and stepped to the sides. "Your highness…", they said as they humbly bowed. She could hear the king's deep voice through the wooden doors. Before stepping in, she took a deep breath and pretended to cry. With fake tears in her eyes, she ran in to the middle of the room. The king saw her and asked his councils to leave. He walked down from his throne and looked worried at her.<p>

"Why are you crying, my dear?", he asked her.

"I do not know if I can do this anymore…"

"What?"

"Marry your son, your majesty…"

"How can you say such nonsense? What happened?"

Now she had the chance. The chance to finally ruin their relationship once and for all. She told him all about what happened only moments ago. How the prince treated her and how she was _"deeply" _hurt. All these were lies. But the king didn't know that. She took advantage of his kindness and used to manipulate him to do something about it.

"Whenever I try to speak to him, he just avoids me. But when that earth girl appears, his mood suddenly changes, as if she's more important to him."

"So this earth girl is the one to blame?"

"Yes, your majesty. I know that she is his most cherished friend, but it seems that he cares for her more than he does for me."

"Do not fear, my dear. I shall speak with him tomorrow."

"Oh, your majesty, that's to kind of you…"

"No, I insist! You have nothing to worry about. You may leave now, go and rest."

"Thank you, your majesty."

After she left, the king sat down on his throne and sighed. Nori placed her hand on his, she could feel her husband's anger inside and how disappointed he was in their son. Despite the fact that it was only a small conflict, this was urgent. In order to save the kingdom's future against other enemies that might attack, the alliance between their kingdom and the Northern kingdom, Plurania, they had to get married! There was no other way.

* * *

><p>The rain poured heavily outside the walls of the palace. The bird's chippered a dreary melody and the sun hid behind the grey clouds. Once again he walked through the mighty halls. Even though it seemed like a gloomy day for everyone, at least someone was in a good mood. The old fencing master looked proudly at the portrait of the royal family, he admired every little detail of it.<p>

It felt like it was his last time watching that remarkable work of art. Yes, soon he would be retired. All his students were almost finished. Some were moving, others were in the army, and the rest were getting married. Soon his most beloved student was also getting married. It filled his heart with pride. Looking back at the first time they met, the moment those little feet's stepped into the dojo, his heart was overjoyed. Of course he was strict and a bit scary, but he taught the prince as his own son. _"If only we could spend more time together, my boy…", _he thought and smiled.

A group of maids passed by, giggling and whispering rumors to one another.  
>"Did you hear it?", a maid asked the other one.<p>

"Hear what?"

"About the prince, silly!"

"Oh? What about him?"

"Haven't you heard that he broke his lover's heart?", the maid suddenly said.

"He did what?"

Canaan's eyes sharpened and so did his ears. He walked over to the maids with a confused expression and a raised eyebrow on his face. The maid was about to continue, but stopped when she saw him approaching them. She cleared her throat and jostled the other maids to act natural. "Pardon me ladies, but what were you speaking of?", he asked them.

"Oh, nothing at all. We were just chattering about… um… our dresses! Isn't that right, ladies?"

"Yes, of course!"

He looked at them with a keen eye. "I suppose you know what we do with liars in this kingdom, right Miruki?", he asked her.

She gulped and avoided eye contact because she knew that not only would they be punished, but they could also be sent to exile!

"Y, yes..."

"Then tell me, what were you whispering to one another?"

"Haven't you heard, master Canaan?", the other maid asked all of a sudden.

"Heard what?"

"That the prince broke his lover's heart!"

"Who is this lover of his, you speak of?"

"His friend, the earth girl. We saw the prince crushed her poor heart after she confronted him."

"The earth girl, Eva?"

"Yes, but she was not the only one. He also broke the princess' heart as well!"

"What?"

He couldn't believe what he just heard. This was too shocking for him. Aikka would never do that, right? As a knight he's extremely noble and chivalrous, he would never hurt someone! Especially not his fiancée!

"When did this happen?"

"Oh, just a few moments ago."

"Forgive me, ladies. I must go."

"Yes, master Canaan.", they said and bowed. The old fencing master rushed out looking for his young apprentice. He had to confront him. This couldn't be true! Luckily, he found him right away. He was only a few meters away from knocking on Eva's door. The prince saw him already before he came marching over. He didn't look pleased.

"Prince Aikka!", Canaan shouted with a frown on his face.

"Canaan?"

"I need to speak with you, your highness, follow me."

* * *

><p>They ran as fast as they could, but the beast didn't let them go and chased them like cat and mouse. Its speed was twice as fast as a cheetah and they could tell that it was hungrier than aggressive. Fortunately, Rick saw somewhere they could hide, an abandon and dark cave. They hid and waited, quite as mice.<p>

But it was no use; the beast recognized their scent already. It was almost like it said: "you can run, but you can't hide". Their heart beat faster than a train and they were shaking like jellies. Slowly the beast stared at them with its bloody eye. It came closer and closer. Now they had nowhere to go. They leaned onto the wall holding their breath. "Not a sound…", Rick whispered. Koji couldn't hold his fear back and scream at the top of his lungs. The beast roared at their faces. It found them! They were doomed! "WHAT SHOULD WE DO NOW?", Koji screamed in despair.

"It was an nice knowing you…", Rick said.

"Huh? What are you saying, Rick! Don't tell me you're giving up? NO! We can't! I don't wanna die! I have some much too live for! SOMEBODY HELP!"

"Alcaeus anzo agmundur!"

Suddenly a sparkling blue shield paralyzed the beast! It fell down on the ground and became to ash! Rick and Koji opened their eyes, but they couldn't believe what they saw. A man in blue and grey and with a long beard, stood in front of them reaching out his staff. "Come quickly, before more of them appear, follow me!", he shouted and summoned three odd-looking creatures. They looked similar to ostriches, but had multicolored feather coat.

The old man led them far away from the forest before it was too late. He led them towards his cottage, which looked like a small house from the medieval, since it was built of woods and grass. When he opened the round door and let them in everything looked like a storm had just blown his house apart! There were books, plants, antique masks and jars everywhere, to say it shortly, it was a total chaos! "Forgive me, but please bear with it for a moment.", he said.

Rick and Koji didn't know what to say, should they escape again or should they thank him for saving their lives? "Excuse me sir, who are you?", Koji asked.

"I am Baldomar and who are you?"

"Um… I'm Koji and that's Rick."

The old man looked at him with a slightly puzzled face, as if he studied him. "Tell me, where do you come from? I see that you are not like the people here."

"We're humans."

"Humans? I thought they were forbidden here in Nouraisia?"

Then he explained that the prince invited them himself and that he made a promise to their friend, Eva. "Ahh, I see. But why were you wondering alone in the woods? It is extremely dangerous out here. Any beast that smell the scent of human blood will certainly kill you."

"We know that now, thanks for saving us by the way. May we know what spell you used? It was quite impressive."

"That is a secret. A wizard's code is never to past his spell to a stranger, especially not humans."

"Why not? Don't you trust us?"

"Could you rely on someone you've just met, young man?"

"No, not really."

"Then so be it. A spell can only be passed on if the person is worthy of it."

Rick nodded. He was right, if the spell was used by someone with evil intentions, it might be dangerous for everybody. Even though Koji respected the old man's decision, he still wanted to know. He was just as curious as a small kitten, but you know what they say, curiosity kills the cat.

* * *

><p>He was out of breath, absolutely speechless. Now he couldn't do anything but just standing there in the corner thinking about what his fencing master just told him. It was somehow surprising, he seemed very serious about this.<p>

_"What is this I hear about you breaking young maidens hearts?"_,_he asked the him._

_"Young maidens? I don't know what you're talking about…?"_

_"That is clearly a lie! If you didn't do something, why were the maids whispering to one another about you breaking some innocent girl's heart?"_

_"Who-", he was about to ask, but then it struck him! "No, that is not true! It was a misunderstanding, please believe me!"_

_"I do, your highness. But first of all, please be more considered of your choices in the future, especially when it comes to your engagement with the princess. If their majesties hear about this, it will create a scandal over the entire kingdom, is what you wish for?"_

_The princess? Now he was the one who's misunderstood. Canaan was furious. It was his responsibility to take care of the prince, he knew that if something happened to him or the people who were close to him, it could cost his life. "Prince Aikka! Are you even listening to me?", he shouted._

_The prince looked back and apologized for his lack of attention. "Forgive me, but I feel so guilty towards her…"_

_"Who are you speaking of? The earth girl?"_

_"Yes, I cannot forgive myself for hurting her. I should have told her…"_

_"I understand that you cherish her very much, but your highness, please concentrate on your duties instead. Remember that it is not her that will save our kingdom."_

_"So you're suggesting that I should just forget about her?"_

_"Yes, that would be the best. Not only for the kingdom, but also for you."_

Forget about her. Could he really do that? Was it really that easy? Would it be the best choice to make? No, it couldn't be this way! He had hurt her already and now he had to make it worse? He hit the wall with his fist and leaned his head on it. This was all too much for him, he had no choice but to think of it and went to rest.

* * *

><p>Down on earth there was another one who was resting or actually sleeping. The sun shone beautifully east for the mighty mountains. Unlike Nouraisa, where it rained, it was a beautiful day. The children were playing outside, the birds sang cheerful melodies and everyone seemed to be happy, except for of course. On a beautiful day like this, he preferred sleeping like a bear going to hibernation. But of course someone had to disturb his beauty rest. Annoyed by the numbers of ringing, he had to get up.<p>

"What do you want?", he asked a bit irritated.

"Good morning -"

The newspaper boy turned around rubbing his eyes making sure that he didn't see what he just saw, but when he looked back he wanted to burn his eyes. "Is there something you need, young man?"

"I, I, I… you… M, …"

"Yes? Spit it out, boy! We don't have all day!"

The poor boy didn't know how to tell him this since it was a bit embarrassing, he just stood there frozen like a statue.

"Well? Of for crying it out loud-", he said and was about to close the door.

"AH! , wait!"

"I'll give you one last chance, what is it?"

He pressed his lips together and looked down. Don followed his glance and looked at himself. Then he realized why the boy looked a bit shocked. He was still in his underwear, but that wasn't the worse part, he wore the ones with the pink hearts on! "Ah, I, I…", he stuttered.

"Ehm…"

"Just, just give me the newspaper already!", Don shouted and grabbed the newspaper.

Phew! What a start on a morning! _"Luckily that boy's nice, but he has no brain…",_he thought and shook his head as he closed the door. He walked to the kitchen and made some freshly brewed coffee and sat down on the couch reading the newspaper. Once again, there was nothing interesting in it.

"Journalist these days only write the same things again and again, don't they?", he sighed and threw it on the table made of glass. He took a sip of his cup and walked over to the large window. _"Wonder how Eva's doing.",_he thought.

* * *

><p>"If the prince invited you to come, shouldn't you be at the palace?"<p>

"That's what we're trying to do, but we got kidnapped by that despicable man who commanded his guards to abandon us here to die."

"What? Who is that man?"

"I think his name was T… thunder or… Thoron, I can't remember."

"THORON? Was he the one who kidnapped you?", Baldomar gasped.

"Yes, do you know him?"

"I should have known! This is terrible. Absolutely horrifying!", he mumbled while walking in circle with a worried face.

"Huh? What are you talking about?", they asked a bit worried.

"But how did he escape? It's impossible!"

"Escape? What do you mean?"

* * *

><p><strong>AN:**

**I have an advice I want to share with you guys! If you're writing a story and you ran out of ideas or you just can't figure out what to write, watch dramas! They're so inspiring, especially the ones with a lot of romance! For you who already knows about this, good for you. Anyway, I guarantee that you'll find it very inspiring too, trust me, it helped a lot with this chapter. Hehe… that was about all I was going to say!**

**What will happen in the next chapter? Will the prince every regain Eva's trust? What's Thoron's dark secret? Who exactly is he?**


	13. Chapter 13: Thoron's dark secret

**A/N:**

**Heeey, guys ~  
>Hope everyone had a nice weekend! What have you been up to lately? I've been baking a lot this weekend, especially cakes and cupcakes. Even though it sounds much, I actually enjoyed it! Besides, it's a fun way to earn quick money! Moving on…<strong>

**Did you think the last chapter was a bit shocking? Well, get ready to read some more shocking things in this chapter! Haha…**

**A little tip: when you come to the part where Baldomar reveals a shocking secret, try reading it while listening to****_"Main titles, chocolat"_, the whole thing will become more epic and intense! Remember to just listen to the beginning, not the whole song or else it'll become a bit corny…**

**Once again, thanks for the awesome reviews so far. Keep on reading my story and don't forget to review! Enjoy ~**

* * *

><p><strong>CHAPTER 13<strong>

"This cannot be… it's simply impossible!"

"What do you mean, sir?"

"Quickly, find the book of spells on the shelf over there!"

He looked between the shelves and found a dusty blue book with some kind of Nourasian letters. Before he gave him the book, he noticed something stuck behind the heavy wooden shelf. When he picked it up, he startled at it. It was a broken picture of the old nourasian with two small children between his arms. Who could this be? They looked so alike and very familiar.

"Koji! What's taking you?", Rick asked and walked over. "Who's that?"

"I don't know, but they look very familiar. Excuse me, Baldomar. Who is this?"

Baldomar's eyes widen. His hands began shaking, sweat drops fell down his wrinkles and a huge frown appeared on his face. "W, where did you find this?"

Koji pointed at the shelf. "It was hidden behind the shelf. Is that you on the picture?"

"Put it back, immediately! I do not wish to see again!"

"Why not? Did something happen between you and these boys? Baldomar…?"

He didn't answer. It became very silent. Nobody said a sound. The more awkward it got, the more sincere it became. "It's enough, Koji. If he doesn't wanna talk about it, just leave him al-"

"No, we have to find out! Maybe it has something with Thoron to do. Please Baldomar. I beg you."

The old nourasian sighed. He had no choice. "Alright…", he said and sat down on his rocking chair.

"Many years ago, when the boys were little, I was their crafts and spells master. The boys were such joy teaching, they were so kind and obedient. I watched them grew, they became stronger and wiser. Despite the fact that they were twins, it was easy to distinguish them. Thoron was the one everyone disliked, even I. Of course he was mature and gentle, but yet a bit hardheaded too. He was nothing compared to his brother. Everyone loved Lao. The little lad was meek and goodhearted. Their parents were too proud of him that they forgot Thoron. Soon he developed a strong hatred and jealousy towards his brother. No one knew anything about it, until that faithful day when his true colors appeared. "

"What happened?"

"One day, the old king became very ill. There was nothing we could do. The king had no choice, but to crown one of his beloved sons to be the next king. Since Thoron was the firstborn, he was certain that he would become Nourasia's new king. But instead, the crown passed on to his younger brother, Lao. After the ceremony, he became devastated. He completely lost it and became extremely furious against him.

I tried to calm him down, but he wouldn't listen! It was too late; his heart became as cold as ice. Lao saw his darken heart and gave him one more chance to live in peace under his rule, but Thoron refused to serve him. In resemblance with his father, he had no choice but to banish his own brother far away from the kingdom. He swore revenge and disappeared."

Small tears fell from his wrinkly cheeks. "Forgive me… but I couldn't hold my tears back.", he said and wiped them off. Koji couldn't hold his tears back either. It was hard to imagine all that dramatic memories he had been trough. Now he understood how precious that picture of him and the boys were for him.

* * *

><p><em>"Where am I?".<em>

_She found herself in the middle of a beautiful meadow. Everything seemed so peaceful, there were butterflies everywhere and the sun had just settled down on the golden sky. "Eva… ", someone said. It was coming from behind. She could see someone walking towards her. The person looked familiar, as if she'd seen her before. She couldn't believe her eyes. The woman had bright pink hair, a stripe and a half-moon tattoo on her face and she wore a short dress in red and yellow._

"_Mom?"_

Maya smiled at her and held both of her hands out. "MOM!", Eva shouted and ran into her arms. Tears fell from her eyes. "I missed you so much…"

"Shh…there, there… it's going to be alright, you'll see.", she whispered softly while stroking her head.

"I wish you never left me… I feel so alone."

"_I'm always with you, even when you __can't__ see me. I'm here, I'm here."_

_Slowly Maya let go of her and began walking backwards. Eva could feel her warmth disappearing and the distance between went further and further. She could feel something was wrong. "Mom?"._

_Suddenly the sky became darker than a raven. The butterflies and the peaceful meadow disappeared and Maya vanished into the dark. "Mom! No! PLEASE DON'T LEAVE ME!", she screamed and tried to follow, but was stopped by some kind of dark creatures with bloody red eyes. She screamed and screamed, but it was no use! "MOM! HELP ME! MOOOOOOM!", she cried._

_"PLEASE DON'T LEAVE MEEEE!"_

She gasped for air. Her whole face was covered in tears and sweat. It was just a dream… or rather a nightmare. Still, it seemed so real.

Someone knocked on the door. Eva quickly wiped off her sweat and sat up properly. "Miss Eva, are you decent? May we come in?". It was the maids. She looked out through the window. _"Right… it's morning already." _

Time went by so fast she forgot it was a new day. Once again, the maids helped her get ready. This time they did it on a different way. Usually they'd just help her pick clothes and style her hair. One of the maids placed a gorgeous dress on her bed.

"Isn't it lovely? We picked it out just for you, my lady."

"What's that dress for?"

"It's for the royal tea party in the afternoon. We want them to look at their best!"

"That's really flattering, but I can't…"

"Oh, but simply you must, my lady! It's an order from the king!"

Hearing that turned the whole situation upside down. Eva thought it was weird. Usually it's the Queen who organize arrangements and orders like this, isn't it? The thought of wearing a dress again gave her goose bumps. Of all the worst thing that could happen to her, that was the worst thing! She shrugged. _"Guess I don't have a choice then."_

* * *

><p>Stan walked down the halls. He could hear loud noises coming from the garden. A lot of people ran back and forth carrying heavy things in their hands. Driven by curiosity, he just had to go down and look at what they were up to. Everyone looked pretty busy with preparing for some kind of special arrangement. "Maybe I should ask if they need hel-", he was about to say when he heard someone scream:<p>

"LOOK OUT!"

A huge vase with flowers were only a few centimeters away from hitting his head! "I, I… forgive me! I didn't mean to do that on purpose, I'm so clumsy!", a sweet voice apologized.

When Stan turned around to see who it was, his jaw dropped to the ground. It was a beautiful maid in a white and blue dress. She was so gorgeous, she looked like an angel. "No, no! It's alright! Here, let me help you.". He kneeled down on his knees and helped her pick up the glass fragments. After picking it up, she bowed and thanked him for the help.

"Thank you… sir?"

Stan got so lost in her eyes; he didn't realize that she actually asked him a question. "Are you alright?", she asked and waved her hands in front of his eyes.

"Huh? Did you say something?"

"Yes, I was asking for your name."

"I'm Stan and you are…?"

Before she could say another word, the head maid was calling for her. "YUNA! Could you come here please, we need you!", she shouted.

"I… must be going now"

"Yeah, sure!"

She bowed one more time before heading back to the other maids. Stan watched as his new love walked gracefully away. "Yuna… that's her name." Once again she took him by surprise. She stopped and smiled back at him before continuing walking again.

_"I think I'm in love…", _Stan smiled.

"Excuse me, sir! We could use some help.", someone said.

"Of course!"

The nouraisian pointed at a small white box under the blue sakura tree. He told him that they needed more flowers to decorate the magnificent staircase where the royal family would arrive later this afternoon. Stan nodded and handed the box over.

"I think we have a problem. There's no flowers left."

"Oh my, could you please get some more then? It's in the storage room."

"Sure! But I don't know where it is?"

He gave him very confusing directions. First he had to go through the hall, up the stairs, turn left, walk two steps to the west and then take the third door to the right and there he would find the extra pair of boxes with the flowers. "Do you think you can remember it?"

"Ehm… I'll try?"

Despite the fact that he didn't remember a thing, he tried at least. On his way he could see a sleepy hair dueled girl walking or rather "sleepwalking" towards him.

"Morning, sleepy head!"

"Morning…", she said looking grumpy.

"Where are you going?"

"Eat breakfast, what about you? You look kinda lost…"

"Um, yeah… about that, do you know where the storage room is?"

"Why don't you ask those guards over there, instead? I'm kinda hungry…"

"Oh, right! Hehe…Thanks!", he scratched his head and left. How embarrassing. How could he forget that he could just ask for directions? Luckily the guards knew showed him the way so he wouldn't get lost again. The storage room was huge! There were large boxes in all sizes with all kinds of stuffs everywhere! How on earth would he be able to find such a small box full of flowers in this room? "Oh sweet bananas of Hawaii...", he sighed and began looking.

During the search, he didn't notice that the old door was still open. Unfortunately for him, a group of maids passed by and closed the door! When he finally turned around, he saw someone shutting the door and dropped the box. "Hey, w-!", but before he could say anything they locked him in! He tried to twist the doorknob, but it wouldn't budge. It was no use, he was stuck in there! He didn't have a choice, but to scream and knock at the door hoping that somebody would hear him. "HELP! HELP!"

* * *

><p>Only the smell from the kitchen filled her mouth with water. Her stomach couldn't take it anymore. It was time for food. Her nose guided her towards the dining room. She could already imagine all the wonderful flavors, only the thought of it made her hungrier. Just when she was about to take another step, somebody bumped into her! She fell down on the floor and hit her back.<p>

"Are you alright?", a gentle voice asked.

When she opened her eyes, she startled at the person. "You!", she gasped.

"Eva?"

"Ah, ah… s, sorry! I didn't mean to bump into you!", she apologized and was about to run away. Keiran grabbed her wrist and tried to calm her down.

"No, no! It's alright. Do not worry; after all… it was I who bumped onto you."

Eva wasn't sure to either trust him or run away again. His smile told her that it might be best to avoid him, but his eyes told her something different. She didn't trust everybody, but somehow it was something that told her she should at least give him a chance.

"Where were you heading to?"

"The dining room, its breakfast now isn't it?"

"It certainly is! I was about to make my way there too. Do you want to come with me? We can walk there together."

"Alright…"

This was kind of awkward. The thought of all the horrible things Keiran did towards her, gave her goose bumps. But right now, it was kind of helpful, since she wanted to take her mind of what happened yesterday.

Keiran pulled out a chair. She sat down on it and noticed that he sat down right next to her, a bit closer than usual. The table was covered with Nouraisas finest cutlery. The knives, forks and spoons were shiny as silver with golden floral patterns at the bottom. Soon the waiters came out with delicious looking meals. It was still steaming hot, just as Eva liked it. But before she could take a bite of the delicate food, they had to wait till the others came.

The guards bowed humbly and stepped to the sides. "Good morning, your majesties.", the maids greeted them. The king and queen smiled delightfully at them and walked over to the table. Keiran and Eva had to greet them as well. "Have you slept well, my dear?", Nori asked her.

"No, not really. I had a nightmare."

"A nightmare? How awful! If you'd like, I can request the maids to prepare you some crusian tea before bed?"

"Oh, that's really thoughtful of you, your majesty! But I'd rather try sleeping well tonight instead of making you go through all that trouble for me."

Nori smiled. _"This girl is simply special."_, she thought. "Very well. Shall we eat then, perhaps?"

"Not yet. He has not arrived.", Lao said.

Eva could barely hold her hands back. She was really hungry and couldn't wait a minute longer! _"Patient, Eva. You don't want to screw up in front of the king and queen, right? Hang in there!"_, a voice in her reminded her.

Fortunately for her, he was just outside the doors. The guards opened the door, bowed and stepped to the sides. She couldn't believe what she saw. It was Aikka! He didn't come alone, the princess was just beside him holding his muscular arm. "Ah, there you are! We were getting worried that you wouldn't join us for breakfast.", the king smiled.

All of a sudden, the peaceful atmosphere perished when a certain person stepped through the heavy doors. Just as she tried to get her mind of him, he had to appear in front of her.

"Is it alright if we eat now, your majesty?", Eva asked carefully.

Lao looked fiercely at her, but soften up when Nori jabbed him. "Of course, my dear. Be our guest.", the queen smiled sweetly.

Once the king snapped his fingers, the waiters quickly ran to the table with the food. Eva picked up her shimmering spoon and was about to gulp down the food, but decided to keep calm since she didn't want to make a scene. Trying to maintain a good image wasn't easy, she was so nervous her hand shook so much she dropped her spoon on the floor! She could feel everyone giving her ugly looks. Not to mention that Aikka saw it too! How embarrassing!

Keiran offered her his help, but she shook her head. "No, no! Its ok, I'll pick it up."

When the waiters brought her a new spoon, she continued eating and pretended that nothing happened. During the breakfast, the princess kept flirting and giggling with Aikka. It really made her very uncomfortable since he didn't do anything agaisnt it. Not even a single reaction. It was almost like he enjoyed it! Keiran noticed her depressed expression and tried to cheer her up.  
>"Eva, have you ever tasted this before?", he asked and picked up a spoon full of grey soup. After she tasted it, her mood changed immediately. "It's really good.", she smiled. Aikka saw that and it made him a bit jealous inside.<p>

After the breakfast everyone left. Keiran walked Eva back to her room and stopped outside her door. "The king has arranged a tea party at the garden l this afternoon, would you care to join me?, he asked and blushed.

"I don't know… I'll consider it."

"Of course, take your time. However, if you change your mind, I will be waiting for you at the garden."

* * *

><p>He paced back and forth. Rick was so restless, he couldn't sit still. The thoughts of Thoron being out there and could attack the palace any moment now made him anxious. He wanted to warn their majesties as quickly as possible, but Baldomar suggested that they should rest first. It was a long way back to the palace, besides they wouldn't make it in a time like that. The woods were dangerous at night. Unless they wanted to get eaten, it would be<p>

best to relax at least one day.

"Could you please just sit down?"

"No! We can't just sit here doing nothing while that crazy lunatic is out there! We have to do something, Koji!"

"Do not worry, we have plenty of time tomorrow. Please, be my guests. Go and rest.", Baldomar suggested and went back to his room.

"You heard the old man, let's go.", Koji whispered.

Rick sighed. Before walking to the room Baldomar prepared for them, he asked for a moment alone. The flames danced wildly inside the smoking fireplace. The fire warmed his pale cheeks. _"What if we don't make it? What if it's too late? Ugh! This drives me crazy!",_he frowned and tear his hair.

* * *

><p>The clock ticked, it was time. There only minutes left before the tea party was beginning. It was time for everyone to prepare themselves. She combed her beautiful brown locks with her white paddle brush with a pink silk bow around it. Tonight, she was going to be the one to astonish everyone and make them startle at her beauty. With her charming personality and marvelous dress, she was sure to win the prince's heart. Just like any other girl in the galaxy, she giggled at the thought of dancing with Nourasias handsomest prince! At the moment she stood up from her dressing table, the maids quickly ran over with her dress.<p>

She wore a one shoulder ivory and pink sash dress. As accessory, she decided to wear a dupioni silk hat with wavy organza brim layers; trimmed with peony fleur with coral pink center and button and a bit of white veiling to accent the rose. After putting on the dress and placing her hair in an elegant updo, she admired herself in front of the mirror. "How do I look, ladies?", she asked the maids.

"As beautiful as always, your highness."

"Thank you, ladies! Oh, I am so excited for tonight!"

"Oh? May we ask why, your highness?"

"It's a secret, darlings. You will all find it out quite soon!", she said and grinned.

* * *

><p>While the princess was acting mysteriously, there was another one preparing herself for the party. "I don't know about this…", she said and scratched her head. She wasn't disappointed, but rather insecure. Her dress was really lovely, however she couldn't stand the thought of all the people who would be there staring at her!<p>

"But Miss Eva, you look so pretty. Isn't that right, ladies?"

"Yes, of course! You're even prettier than the princess!", some of them shouted.

"Do you really mean that?"

"Why, yes! I think you should definitely attend the party. You deserve it."

She looked at the mirror one more time. The maids were right, she looked very pretty indeed. She wore a beautiful white chiffon bandeau dress with floral details on the top. As for the shoes, she wore red high heels similar to Christian louboutin pumps. The maids curled her black locks and placed them on her right shoulder. Now, she was ready for the party.

"May we ask who's going to escort you, Miss Eva?"

"Umm… Keiran. He's waiting for me at the garden."

"Sir Keiran? The princes' friend? Oh, you are very lucky, Miss Eva! He's so handsome and so gentle!"

"I guess so…", she said and blushed.

They opened the doors for her and she walked out. She could already hear the music outside the halls. It sounded very boring, but interesting at the same time. After walking down the spiral staircase she stepped into the garden.

She couldn't believe it. Everything was absolutely breathtaking! The decorations were nothing like the ones on earth, so unique! It looked like the scene from Alice in wonderland, where she met the mad hatter and the bunny at their tea party. Everybody wore stunning dresses in different colors with a hat on their heads. Eva was in such a hurry, she forgot her hat! It was very important to attend with a hat on so you could fit in. _"Guess I'll just have to go without one…",_she sighed.

Suddenly someone put a hand on her shoulder. She gasped and looked around slowly. "Keiran! You almost gave me a heart attack!"

"I apologize for the sudden greeting, but I couldn't just let you stand here by yourself. Come, let's greet the other guests."

They walked over to a small crowd and welcomed them. "Why, Keiran. Who is this lovely lady you brought with you?", an old lady asked.

"This is Ev- Oh, forgive me. Please introduce yourself.", he said and looked at her.

She was so nervous, instead of saying a clear sentence, she began stuttering. Then she blushed and looked away. "So you are saying that your name is Eva?"

"Yes…?"

"Madame. Madame Arianne. Do tell me… what brings you here to the beautiful land of ours?"

"Uhm… I-", she was going to say, but got interrupted by a familiar voice calling for her.

"Eva, darling. There you are."

"Your majesty!"

"You know the queen?", Madame Arianne asked.

She nodded and looked back at the queen. Nori smiled at her as usual. "You look fantastic, my dear, and that dress of yours is simply lovely!"

"Thank you, your majesty. You look really beautiful too as well."

The queen wore a long pleated dress in white, with sleeves and a brown belt around her waist. Her hair was in an elegant dutch braid and on top of her head, she wore a a white dupioni silk hat with wavy silk brim layers; trimmed with turquoise organza-covered shantung sash and blue sakura flowers.

"Why, thank you, dear! You did not come alone, did you? Is there someone who escorted you?"

"I got the honor of escorting this most beautiful miss to the tea today, your majesty.", Keiran said and held Eva's hand.

"Oh…"

The queen looked to the side with a raised brow. She didn't expect him to escort her, but rather her own son. "Why, how…lovely! If you'll excuse me, I have to speak with the king for a second. Please, enjoy your tea."

"Come along, dears. Sit with us.", Arianne invited them.

Keiran lead her hand and escorted her to the table. They sat among Nourasias most respected dukes and duchess. Everything looked so high classed. For Eva, this was completely new. She had never experience this kind of party before, in fact she never got invited to any of this.

As soon as the musicians started playing a calming melody, the waiters and maids began serving the entire guest with remarkable looking food. Although everything seemed extremely fussy, everyone seemed to enjoy it! The meal looked very magnificent! The guests clapped their hands in delight. The plates contained savory, bite sized sandwiches as first courses. For sweets there were served coconut milk scones with cranberries, nice and golden with a hint of lemon and topped with raspberry cream, along with a good pot of tea, of course!

"Lao. May I ask you where our son is? I thought he was going to escort Eva today, but instead Keiran did it. This is not what I expected! What are you up to?"

"You'll find it out soon enough.", he smirked.

Before they could begin eating, the guards blew through their mighty trumpets causing everyone to pay attention. "May I present the guest of honor! PRINCE AIKKA AND PRINCESS MARIELLE!"

After he announcing that, everyone stood up and clapped. Everybody, except Eva. "What are you doing? Stand up!", one of the dukes said and frowned. She blushed, stood up and clapped as well, even though she didn't want to. The young couple walked hand in hand through the crowd straight to the royal table, where the king and queen sat. Aikka watched her depressed face as he passed their table. If it was possible, he wanted to walk over, but he couldn't. He remembered his father's words earlier in the morning.

_The prince picked up his sword and was getting ready for his fencing lessons with Canaan at the break of dawn. On his way to the Dojo, he came across his father, the king. Lao gave him an unusual bright smile. "There you are my son. May I have a word with you?", he asked. His face was beaming of happiness._

_They sat down on a bench outside the garden. "It is a fine day, isn't it?", the king smiled. "Yes, indeed… is there something you want to tell me, father?"_

_"I have arranged a tea party this afternoon and I want you to be there."_

_"A tea party? That's odd, isn't it always mother who arrange these?"_

_"Yes, but this time it is I who arrange it. Today will be a very special occasion and I want to come. Not alone, you will escort the princess with you."_

_"The princess? Why can't Keiran do it instead?"_

_"Why? Do you have other plans?"_

_Aikka gulped and shook his head. "Then I presume that you have nothing against it, right?"_

_"No… but I wanted to escort E-"_

_"The earth girl?", he snorted. "Have you lost your mind? No, you have to focus on your duties, Aikka! If I see you with her or even look at her, I will take care of her myself!"_

_"No! Don't do anything to her! I'll handle this."_

_Although it was hard to obey, it was the king's orders. "Do not provoke me, Aikka. Do you understand?"_

_"Yes… father."_

Aikka turned to see his parents smiling at him. Lao had a particularly wide grin and was waving slightly at him. He saw his mother shaking her head and rubbing her eyes. She looked up and mouthed the words: "this was your father's idea not mine. Don't blame me."

"Your majesties.", Marielle said and bowed.

"Ah, Marielle. Welcome! Please do sit."

She smiled proudly and looked at Aikka, but he didn't look back. Instead he looked at Eva. "Aikka?". Still he didn't answer. She coughed loudly and finally he looked at her pointing at the chair. "Oh, right… ", he sighed and pulled it out for her.

"Excuse me? May I have some tea, please?", Marielle asked. The waiters rushed over quickly with the ceramic teapot filled with steaming hot tea.

"Certainly, how do you like it? Strong or weak?"

"Weak"

"Would you like some cream too, your highness?"

The princess nodded and he poured boiling water into her cute little pink cup. Then he added it with a tiny dash of cream on top. She held out her pinky while sipping the tea little by little.

"Such manners! Such etiquette! How impressive!". Eva heard the dukes and duchesses admire her every little move as if she was some kind of famous painting. Instead of being jealous, she looked to the side noticing Aikka looking at her. It made her really uncomfortable and she wanted to get away. Keiran held her hand and smiled. Despite it feeling awkward, it was a bit calming too. It felt like at least someone cared about her.

Marielle stared at them. She was dumbfounded. _"How can such handsome guy like Keiran join a ruffian like her?",_ she snorted. _"Well, at least she is nothing compared to me!"_.

During the party, everyone had the time of their lives, enjoying every little bit of it. Soon enough, the party had to end, but before that everyone got the chance to enjoy a little dance in the sunset. Eva was really getting tired and just wanted to go to bed, but unfortunately she had to wait till the party ended. It was very rude if you just left without saying anything.

A young nouraisian boy in a black and white suite walked over to ask her to dance with him, but Eva shook her head and smiled friendly. "Oh, I'm sorry… I can't dance." Keiran looked at him. He could feel that the boy had something in mind. Even though she refused to dance, he didn't give up that easily; he kept nagging and nagging. When he grabbed her wrist and tried to drag her with him, Keiran knew that he had crossed the line.

"Hey! What are you-", she gasped. "No! Stop! Please, no!"

"Hey, let go of h-!". Keiran was about to walk over, but all of a sudden somebody ran over and pushed him away from her! The person pulled her to the sides and held her hand tightly. "Don't touch her! If she said no, it means no!", he shouted.

Eva looked up and blushed. Her heart beat faster than a train and her hands were getting all sweaty. "Aikka?"

He smiled at her. She could feel his warm breath on her forehead; everything became warmer and warmer as he leaned closer to her. This was too much, nothing she expected! No, it couldn't be this way. Not like this! She pushed his slim body away and threw her heels of before running. "No, Eva, wait!", he shouted as he chased her.

The whole scene captured the guest's attention, not to mention the king's and queen's too! Marielle couldn't take her eyes of Aikka who ran in despair after his love. "Argh! That brat! How dare she ruin my tea party!", she complained.

Eva ran through the halls. She hid behind a wall and sat down with her head between her legs. Tears were falling down her cheeks. _"Stop it, Eva. Why are you crying? It's not like he hurt you…"_, a voice in her said. She could hear Aikka's voice calling for her in the other end of the hall. "Eva! Come out, please." She wiped off her tears and quickly stood up. In case he found her, she was ready to run again.

Aikka heard her sobbing and walked closer to the wall. "Why are you acting this way? Why are you making it difficult?". Instead of walking up to her, he stopped only a few meters away.

She came out from the wall with her eyes full of tears. "Because I don't want to see you anymore…"

He shook his head and smiled. He didn't want to believe it. "Your eyes tell me that you do… I want to know all your true feelings."

* * *

><p><strong>AN: Let's stop there, shall we? Hehe… I know, I know. Bet you're all excited to know what happens next? I don't know how long it'll take to finish the next chapter, maybe a week or two. So hang in there, guys! Please review so I know what you guys think!**

**Will Aikka finally know Eva's true feelings? Will Rick and Koji make it to the palace in time? Find it out in the next chapter!**


	14. Chapter 14: Marielle's revenge

**A/N:**

**Hi, guys ~**

**How are you? Hope everyone had a nice weekend. Sorry if you had to wait forever for this chapter, but to be quite honest I ran out of ideas. About that, keep reading till the end. I have a special surprise for you!**

**Do you sometimes feel lost when you're reading something long and boring? Well, at least I do. Sometimes when I'm reading a dialogue it's hard to imagine the characters voices. That's why you guys should watch**_**"about Prince Aikka (EN)" **_**at YouTube. I think it's much easier to read the story when you remember what the prince sounds like. Trust me, if you watch this your heart will melt! Especially if you watch episode 16, Hehe…**

**Anyways, thanks for the reviews so far! Didn't actually think I would get some. Just remember to review this chapter! Enjoy ~**

* * *

><p><strong>CHAPTER 14:<strong>

She hid behind the wall hoping that he wouldn't find her. This was too much, she couldn't bear seeing his face. Her heart beat faster for each step he took. He came closer and closer, but stopped only a few meters away. "I know you're there… please come out."

Eva gulped and wiped her tears off before coming out from the wall. She tried to pretend that nothing happened and smiled innocently, but Aikka could see through her smile that she was suffering from something. "Why are you acting this way? Why are you making it so difficult?"

Only those few words were enough to make her smile disappear. Every word he said made it harder to look him in the eyes, his questions were so painful to answer.

"Why?", he asked her once more. He kept asking "why" repeatedly, but still she didn't answer. When Aikka tried to walk closer to her, she screamed all of a sudden: "No, stop! Don't touch me… I don't want to see you…"

"What?". Aikka shook his head and smiled gently. He didn't believe what she said and walked closer. Now their bodies were only inches away. "I want to know all your true feelings." True feelings? What did he mean? He stared deeply into her eyes before pulling her into his warm arms.

"You fool…", he whispered and pulled her chin up carefully. "Stop running away from me…"

Her tears kept falling down her pale cheeks. Instead of fighting it, she fell into his chest sobbing. "Aikka, you dummy…". She wasn't happy or sad. Right now, she really needed his hugs. He laid his cheek upon her head and held her tighter.

The princess startled at them. She couldn't believe what she saw. Her fiancée was hugging another woman! The fact that it was the girl she really hated, made the whole situation worse. She was so furious she could tear them apart and rip her head off! But the princess had other she was back in her room, she commanded the maids to turn on the intergalactic- communicator so she could speak with her father. She would never accept the fact that the prince's heart belonged to someone else. It made her feel that everything and each time they spent with each other was in vain.

At first the screen was very hazy, but afterwards the gigantic image of the king appeared on it. "Who is this I speak with?". In resemblance with a contrabass, the king had a deep and dark voice.

"It is I, your daughter, princess Marielle. I have an important matter I wish to speak with you."

Before sharing it with her father she cleared her throat and forced false tears in her eyes. "There is this earth girl which I hate so incredibly , whose name is Eva. She really gets on my nerves and I cannot stand her! Whenever I have a moment alone with the prince, she always appears and ruins it! DO SOMETHING, FATHER!", she complained.

"I see. Do not worry, I shall take care of it."

"Thank you, father"

She bowed as his image slowly faded away. The princess grinned. Now she was sure that nothing would stand in her way of winning the prince's heart.

* * *

><p>The sun had just settled down on the golden sky. The stunning party was over. All of the guests went back home to their soft and comfortable beds, taking the next train to dreamland. As soon everyone in the royal staff was finished cleaning up, they headed back to their rooms resting for the rest of the day. A young and tired maid walked through the halls of the palace, ready to go to sleep after a long exhausting day. Along with her she carried a small box full of flowers. Before going to bed, the head maid asked her to do one small favor.<p>

"Here we are, finally…", she sighed and opened up the door. Finally she could take a breath. All of a sudden a man with brown hair fell down on the floor right in front of her! She screamed on the top of her lungs and dropped the box_. "Oh my, isn't that the young man who helped me earlier this morning?"_, she thought and turned him around.

"Why, it is! But why…?"

She kept smacking his chin repeatedly, hoping that he would wake up. Finally after his chin was swollen and red as a tomato, he woke up. "Ugh… what happened? I- Yuna!", he gasped and blushed.

"Huh? You remember my name?"

"Ah… I, I… you…"

He got completely lost in those sparkling blue eyes of hers again. He was so nervous he couldn't even say one clear sentence. "Are you alright?"

"Y, yes. Thank you for saving me."

"Saving you? How come?"

Stan explained that he was looking for a box of flowers in the storage room earlier this morning, when he got looked in all of a sudden by some person walking by. "That person must have thought that nobody was in there and maybe thought it would be alright if he or she closed it."

"Yeah, maybe…", he smiled. He marveled every little bit of her. Her curly brown hair in an updo, her bright smile and those sparkling blue eyes of hers. He got so carried away; he forgot that his stomach was growling like a lion.

"Haven't you eaten yet?".

Yuna could tell by his embarrassed expression that he hadn't eaten for hours. Luckily she knew that the kitchen still had some leftovers from the party.

"You poor thing. Come along, let's go find you something to eat."

He followed her to the big kitchen where Nourasias most talented cooks made huge plates of delicious food, enough to feed an army. Yuna grabbed her white apron with blue polka dots on and walked over to the sink. "Is there something special you wish to eat?", she asked him while scrubbing her hands with soap.

"Umm… I don't know. I can eat anything, just make whatever you can!"  
>She turned on the hotplate made of shimmering iron and picked out some odd-looking vegetables from the storage room. Then she began washing them and cutting them into small bite sizes.<p>

Even though the meal smelled delicious, Stan had another thing in his sight. He couldn't take his eyes of her. Who knew that an ordinary maid like her could be so skillful at cooking?

After a few minutes the food or rather the sumptuous meal was done. The table was covered with a big plate of crab-looking meat with lemon slices on top, julienne sized vegetables on the side and small plate with fruits and cream. "Wow, this is amazing! Where did you learn all this?"

"Oh, I do not want to brag…"

"C'mon, don't be the modest. You're so talented!"

Yuna blushed and said while smiling: "It was my mother. When I was young I used to watch her preparing food for me and my brother. I admired every little detail and afterwards she taught me all her secrets to these delicious treats."

"That's great! Tell your mom she's very lucky to have you." With that Yuna blushed even more. Her face had a shade of pink like a pig.

"So… how was the party?"

"You should have been there. All my life I have been working here, I have never seen the prince that furious before!"

"The prince? What happened?"

"There was this young man who asked for Miss Eva's hand to dance, but she declined. The boy kept nagging and nagging even though she refused to. When he tried to pull her out to the floor, the prince came quickly and pushed him away from her after threatening him! Then Miss Eva began running away all of a sudden."

Suddenly something hit him. _"That explains why she was a bit depressed this morning… maybe something happened between those two…",_he thought.

And so the night went on. The moon raised high above the glorious sky shoving the golden sun rays away and turned light into dark. After a long and cold night, the sun raised behind the mountains waking up the sleeping people of Nourasia to a new day.

* * *

><p>Eva woke up with a smile. Today was going to be a great day. She was going to spend the whole day with the prince, all by herself, just as she wished for. She was so excited she couldn't wait till the maids came in with her clothes and just jumped off the bed pulling on something herself.<p>

As soon as she was done with combing her hair and putting on a pretty dress, she ran out passing the maids towards the prince's room. She knocked twice and opened up the door. "Aikka, are you in th-", she stopped and blushed. Right in front of her stood a shirtless and muscular body. The prince tilted his head to the side and screamed. "Ah, Eva! I,I…", he blushed. Eva closed the door and waited outside. She didn't say a word after a few seconds later.

"Naked…", was the first thing that came out her mouth. Then she tore her hair and screamed inside herself. _"Wait a minute! Stop, stop, stop thinking about it! Get it of your mind, right now!  
><em>  
>After a while Aikka came out, finally with a decent shirt on. The two stared awkwardly at each other and then blushed.<p>

"Follow me."

Aikka led her to the backside of the palace where G'dar was waiting for them. He helped her up and they flew away high above the wonderful sky. Soon they were far away from the palace and people below them were so small they look similar to ants. "Where are we going?", Eva asked.

"You will find it out soon enough.".

After a while they arrived at a shallow, yet peaceful meadow. Aikka grabbed the small bag around G'dar's waist and walked over to a blue sakura tree. He prepared some sort of picnic under the blooming sakura tree. It was quite simple, yet very romantic.

They both sat down and looked up to the sky. Aikka pulled out something white and fluffy out of the basket. It almost looked like marshmallows. While they were eating, they exchanged experience with each other. Aikka told her all about his adventures as little, the first time he met Canaan and how afraid he was of him and the fun things he learned. Eva laughed so much her stomach began aching. "Wow, your life must be so exciting in proportion to mine which is very boring…"

"Well, I do enjoy being treated as a royal... but sometimes I wish I could be an ordinary boy without duties, free as a bird and do as I please."

Aikka smiled. "How about you? Is there something that you wish you could change?"

"Yes… sometimes I miss my mom. I wish I could see her again, just once.", she sighed and looked up to the sky. "Do you remember when we were on Alwas… under those big trees?"

"Yes, I do. Why?"

"It's just… it feels like we're in Alwas again. Don't you think so?"

"It does…"

"Back then… before you went back to your pit…", Eva mumbled and blushed. "… what were you suppose to do?"

The prince's eyes widen. A slight pink shade covered his cheeks. "I…". He smiled. "I was trying to… ki-", he was about to say when Eva suddenly stood up and walked to the meadow while pulling him with her. She began dancing around in circles on the soft green grass. Soon they became so dizzy they fell down on the colorful flowers.

The first one to fall was Aikka then Eva fell upon his body with their faces only inches away. Both blushed as they felt each other's warm breath on each other's lips. The prince moved his face closer and closer to hers. Slowly Eva closed her eyes. She could feel his warm breath close to her lips. He held both his hands around her cheeks and pulled her closer to him. But before he reached her lips, they suddenly heard a screech coming behind them!

"What was that?"

Aikka's ears sharpen. He quickly recognized that it was coming from G'dar. Something must have happen to him! The prince ran quickly back to his mount. He could see that he was wounded under his left wing, but where was the beast that hurt him? Aikka carefully walked over to a suspicious bush. Suddenly he heard something rustle between the thick bushes. G'dar screech in despair. Something big and red with wings and sharp teethes attacked him!

"AIKKA!"

Eva ran as fast as possible over to help him, but Aikka shouted that she had to run away while she still had a chance. The beast was too powerful and had overcome him. "RUN, EVA! NOW!"

"NO, WHAT ABOUT YOU?"

"DO NOT WORRY ABOUT ME! HURRY BEFORE IT'S TOO LATE! RUN, QUICKLY, DO NOT LOOK BACK!"

* * *

><p>Back at the palace the king sat on his throne at the council meeting. During the meeting he noticed an empty chair just across the table. He sighed and frowned. "Your majesty." Lao looked up and saw that everyone looked at him. "Is there something wrong?"<p>

"Yes… I feel like someone is missing. Tell me, who is sitting on that chair?". Everybody in the council startled at the chair and gulped. "It is your… son, your majesty.", they said resignedly.

Lao's smile disappear within a second. He tightened his fist and hit the table. "WHAT! Then where is the boy?", he shouted fiercely.

No one had the guts to speak and avoided eye contact. The king walked up to the prince's fencing master. "Canaan."

"Yes, your majesty?"

"Find him. If not, all shall be punished!"

The further she ran, the more anxious she got. She stopped for a minute to breath. What was she going to do now? She couldn't just run away and hide while he was out there and could get killed by that vicious beast! Eva knew that she had to do something and that fast! But what? "HELP! SOMEBODY! PLEASE HELP!", she screamed. She kept screaming and screaming, but nobody could help. Fortunately she saw someone in blue and grey walking between thick tree's just a few meters away. Like a cheetah, Eva ran quicker than lightning over to the man and asked him for help. "Excuse me, please help!", she implored.

_"What is this? Another human?",_the person thought. With no hesitation Eva pulled the man along with her back to where she left the prince. "W, wait- let go of me! Hey, you! Let go of me this instant!", he shouted and hit her with his wooden cane.

"Ouch!". She let go of him immediately and held her hands on her head trying to press down the bump.

"That will teach you to obey others, young lady!", he snorted and was about to walk away when she grabbed his leg causing him to fall down into the mud. He wiped it off with a white cloth before frowning at her.

"Good gracious! What's wrong with you, child?"

"Please! You have to help me! I have a friend out there who's being attacked by this, this dragon-like monster with wings!"

"A beast with wings, you say? It must be a jolkey!". He picked up his cane and followed her back to the prince. There they saw him still fighting against the jolkey. It growled and scratched him with its knifesharp claws. "AHHHHH!"

"AIKKA, NO!", Eva screamed. The old man whistled something in nourasian she couldn't hear. It was almost like a dog whistle. The second the beast vanished into the woods again, Eva ran over to the prince helping him up. He did not only have scratches on his cheeks, but he had a big bleeding wound on his leg.

"Are you alright, young man?"

"Ugh… yes.", he said and limped over to G'dar.

"Thank you for saving him…?"

"Baldomar."

"Thanks, ."

He walked over to the prince's mount and noticed the wound beneath his left wing. The old nourasian healed it before they flew their way back ato the palace again. "Hurry, G'dar! We have to get back to the palace!"

"Eva… it is alright. We do not need to…"

"No! I can't just let you go with a bleeding leg. We need to get back, Aikka."

"I do not… wish to ruin… our… da-", he said before collapsing on her back with his hands around her waist.

"Aikka? Aikka!", she gasped. Within minutes they were back at the palace. If they stayed longer, he could have died! As soon as they landed on the ground, Eva carried him off G'dar's back and headed over to the crowd of maids. "Somebody! Help!"

"What is going o- Oh! Your highness!" The maids came quickly and helped her taking the prince to his room. While some of the maids lied him carefully down on his bed, the others went to look for medicine and herbs to treat his wounds. "I think it is best if you could leave for a moment.", the head maid suggested.

Eva nodded and walked out the door. When she stepped out she came across Aikka's fencing master, Canaan. "Ah, Miss Eva. Have you seen the prince?"

She began sweating and gulped. "I… oh, look what's over there!", she mumbled and tried distract him to not open the door.

"Huh?". He tilt his head to the side, but it was nothing . Then he looked back at her with a raised brow. "Well, do you?"

"Eh… no… yes… I, I…"

The more she stuttered, the more suspicious he got. "May I ask you why you are standing in front of his door?"

"Um… I was just-". Suddenly they heard a scream coming from his room.

"What was that?"

"AH! I, It's nothing!", she said and tried to block his way. "I heard something. Please step aside so I can see if everything is alright in there."

"No, wait!"

"Miss Eva! Please move! Are you hiding something?"

"I-", she was about to say when Canaan pushed her to the sides and opened up the door. He couldn't believe what he saw. How in the world was he going to report that to the king? "Prince Aikka?"

* * *

><p>Meanwhile deep in the Aldegar forest, an old nourasian was waking up two sleeping beauties. "Wake up, wake up.", he said and shook them. But they refused to get up and just turned around to the other side. "Why, I have never…", he snorted. Baldomar gazed at them and walked outside to get a bucket of water. When he came back he first pulled off their warm duvet and threw the freezing water over them! Soon they jumped off the bed rolling on the floor like fishes outside the water.<p>

"Gather your belongings and meet me outside.", the old man said and chuckled.

After picking up their stuff, which of course was wet too, they walked outside the wooden cottage finding Baldomar sitting on those odd-looking creatures again. They looked at him with a raised brow. "Have you gathered your belongings now?"

"Yes, why? Where are we going?"

"No time to explain. Hop on and follow me." Rick and Koji jumped on each of their birds and followed him down the woods. They were heading the same direction to the palace.

* * *

><p>"Where is the boy?", the king shouted and stared fiercely at the maids and guards. Again, they didn't say anything in fear of getting punished. Their hands were all clam and sweaty and the closer the king walked towards them, the more nervous they got. Lao lost his patient and looked around one last time before marching firmly over to the room of his son. As he quickly rushed over to his room, he came across a certain young lady. "Your majesty.", she said and bowed deeply.<p>

"Have you seen Aikka?"

When she saw the look on his face, she wished she was invisible. The king didn't look happy. _"Yes, I've seen him. In fact, he's lying on his bed screaming like heck right now. Do you want to come and see?",_she thought. What else was she supposed to say? The king was about to ask her one more time when he heard a loud and painful scream coming out from the prince's room all at once! "What was that?", he asked and walked closer.

Eva's eyes widen. She blocked his way and tried to hold him back, but got pushed away when Aikka's fencing master stepped out the door with a completely shocked face. His face became extremely pale when he turned to the side and realized that the king was just beside him. "Y, your majesty!"

"What is going in there?"

"Ah, it is nothing. Nothing at all. Isn't that right Miss Eva?". She didn't know if she should nod or shake her head. Instead of saying anything, her body froze like a statue. Suddenly they heard Aikka scream louder and louder! "AIKKA!", the king exclaimed and opened the door rapidly.

After a little while when everything settled down and the maids and others left the room, the king came out too. Eva and Canaan were sitting outside waiting for him. "Your majesty. Is everything alright?", Canaan asked carefully.

First the king looked at him with a bizarre look, and then frowned at Eva. Right now she just wanted to sink trough the floor. He took a deep breath before telling them that he wanted to speak with them as soon as Aikka recovered. After that the king took his leave with Aikka's fencing master walking beside him and trying to calm him down. Eva took her chance and checked on the prince. "Are you feeling better?", she asked and kneeled down beside his bed.

"A bit…". He looked so pitiful and weak like a little vulnerable puppy.

"I'm sorry… I shouldn't have left you…". She felt so guilty and thought that everything was her fault.

"What? No, you are not the one to blame. You have done nothing wrong…", he said and gently stroke her cheeks while smiling heavenly at her.

"Aikka…". She held his warm hand onto her cheeks and shed a small tear.

* * *

><p>The next day everything seemed to be alright. The princess walked around in the palace with her precious little kitten between her hands. She marveled at how tall and perfect manly figure the guards cut as they strode back and forth between the halls. But nothing compared to the prince. He was tall and slim under that heavy armor and white shirt, with just a tinge of muscle in the most correct of places.<p>

The princess was not the only one who was up early. Eva stood up much earlier than usual with intentions to help the prince get better. As she was heading to his room, she noticed that many maids were in a hurry carrying serving plates full of food in the same directions as her. She was just around the corner when she heard someone scream. "Ah! Your highness!", the maid exclaimed with eyes as large as bowling balls.

"Iiiiiik! Look where you're going, you toad! You have ruined my gorgeous dress. I cannot believe it! Do you know how much this cost?"

"Oh, I am so sorry. Please forgive me, it was not on purpose!", she begged her.

But the princess refused to accept her apology and commanded her to lick all the stains out from top to toe. Eva saw this and was really shocked seeing how she treated the poor pitiful maid. Tears began filling the young maiden's eyes. She was about to do it, but then Eva came in and stopped it. "What are you doing? Why are you licking her dress?"

"Did you not see that this clumsy idiot here ruined my dress?"

"She didn't ruin it, it was an accident. Besides, didn't she apologize to you already? Why won't you accept it?".

Marielle raised her chin up and looked away. Nobody was going to take her pride. She was the princess and could do anything she wanted.

"Well, did she?"

"Yes, but I refuse to arrive in front of the king and queen looking like a ruffian like you.", she snorted.

"You should be ashamed of yourself. Look at her. Doesn't she look pitiful to you? She already said sorry, why would you command her to do things that she shouldn't do?"

"What does has this with you to do? You are just as pathetic as her! Don't interfere with something you don't know, you dual haired idiot!"

That really hit her bursting point. Eva was really angry at her now. Not only did she insult her, but now she didn't even want to listen? "Now, listen, Marielle. I-"

"How dare you to say my name without using my formal title! You should call me your highness, show some respect for you elders, you ungrateful earthling. You are just as pathetic as this maid. Do you know who I am?"

_"Alright that's it."_, Eva thought. "Yes, I know exactly who you are. That's why I keep speaking respectfully to you. If I didn't know, I'd say you were a selfish spoiled little brat who trampled on other people's lives to make yourself happy."

Marielle's eyes widen. She had never heard such indignantly in all her life! "Are you done talking?"

Eva smirked. "When I think of more to say, I'll tell you.", she said and turned around and continued walking.

"Hey, stay right there! Hey! HEY! ARGH! THAT, THAT… URGH!", she shouted after her.

* * *

><p>Meanwhile, Aikka was on his way to his father's study room. This didn't sound good. Each time he was summoned to have a word with his father, he knew that it was either reminding him of his duties or yelling at him again. Although he didn't want to go, he had to. His father was a though man and he would never take a no for an answer. He knocked quietly at the door. The guards opened it up from the inside and let him in. As soon as he was there, the king asked the guards to leave them in silence. "You wanted to speak with me…?"<p>

Before speaking he took a deep breath and sighed. "You do know how much you mean to me, right?"

"Yes, father. Why?"

"It pained me in the heart to see you lying wounded and screaming on your bed yesterday."

With that Aikka was absolutely dumbfounded. His father had never said anything like that before. "What do you mean?"

"If I were to lose you, my one and only son, I wouldn't know what to do…"

"I never thought of that before…"

"You are so young and so fragile. You have to be more careful! What exactly happened yesterday?"

"I… eh… was out on a picnic with Eva."

"WHAT? That earth girl? Did I not just tell you a few days ago to-"

"Focus on my duties? Yes, but father please. If there is so much I must be, can I still just be me? The way I am?"

"It is not that I do not allow you to spend time with your friends, but you know you have better things to do. I simply think that girl is just a distraction for you."

"No, she is not! She has nothing with this to do."

"She does! Do you remember that tea party I arrange for you?"

Aikka nodded, but didn't want to listen. He knew that his father would make a big scene out of it. It was like this every time. The king saw this and asked him if he paid attention.

"Have you lost your mind? That tea party of yours was supposed to be an engagement celebration for you and Marielle! I was supposed to announce it, but you left without my permission! Do you know how humiliating that is for me?"

"I…". As if that wasn't enough the king kept going.

"Yesterday I spoke with her father and was yelled at because I did not keep my promise. Now we have only one last chance to make it all together, I want you to stay beside her from now on and not with that friend of yours. If I ever see you with her again, I will send her home immediately! Is that clear?"

Although he didn't want to he had to be compliant. Once his father left the room, he sat down on the floor right next to the wall with tons of portraits of his family. Send her home? No, it couldn't be. _"She means too much to me already… I cannot make her leave.", _he thought and leaned his head on the wall.

When he walked out the door he saw Eva waving at him and running cheerfully to him. The look on her face made him very depressed. Instead of holding out his hands to sweep her of her feet like in a fairytale story, he just walked away. "Aikka?".

Eva tried to catch up, but the closer she got to him, the further he ran away. "Aikka! What are you doing?", she shouted a bit anxious after him. But he didn't answer. How could he? From that day on, the prince avoided her and created a long distance between them. Confused of if the prince still cared for her, she became more and more insecure. Their friendship, trust and memories were slowly slipping away. What was going on?

* * *

><p>After riding in several hours, the boys became weaker and weaker. It felt like their bodies were melting in the heat of the burning sun. Not only was their stomach empty, but their throats were dry as the Sahara dessert. While Koji who had black hair, was complaining that he was about to be grilled in the sun, Baldomar and Rick searched for somewhere they could relax at least for a little while. At last they arrived at a cold and decadent cave<strong>. <strong>All of them **  
><strong>tossed themselves in the shallow, but refreshing little puddle of water. "I must be in heaven…", Koji hallucinated.

"Quickly, eat these berries before you get heatstroke too, young man!", Baldomar said and shove him some of his provision.

"Hey, throw me some too."

Koji threw the rest of the berries to him, but missed since he threw to far. The berries trundled longer and deeper into the dark cave. "Oh, man. Seriously? Can't you throw it properly next time?", Rick sighed and stood up to find them. He looked between every nooks and corners, but the berries seemed to have disappeared in the dark.

Rick was about go back when he stumbled over something shining and shimmering. It looked like gold, but sparkled even more! Drool began dripping from the corner of his mouth. His eyes were glued to the stone.

* * *

><p>"What's happening? Why doesn't he talk to me anymore? Was there something I did?". She asked and asked, but never got an answer. All of these questions kept spinning around in her head. She felt so alone. Abounded. With no friends in the world. She sat underneath the blue sakura tree in the garden waiting for him to pass by so she could get some answers. It didn't take long before she heard his familiar voice coming closer and closer to the garden. "Aik-", she stopped. Right in front of her was the prince she once knew holding hands with the girl she hated the most.<p>

"Why, would you look at that? Hi, Eva!", the princess mocked her. "Why so sad? Aren't you happy for me? I am getting married to the handsomest man in the entire galaxy! Isn't that right, dear?".

Eva looked at him with longing eyes. She tried to make eye contact, but the prince wouldn't even look at her. Instead he let go of Marielle's hand and put it on her right shoulder and continued walking. She watched as they laughed and smiled together. That was supposed to be her. It broke her heart. Eva ran back to her room and tossed herself on the bed crying and crying. She could be tough , she could be strong, but without him, it wasn't like that at all.

* * *

><p>His phone pinged on his blue night table. He reached his arm to find it, but it fell down on the floor. "Oh, seriously… who's calling in the middle of the night?", he whined and sat up rubbing his face and then looking for his phone. When he picked it up, he was very surprised. Those tree words on the message told him everything.<p>

_"I need you."_

* * *

><p><strong>AN:  
>Hehe… I bet you're wondering who that guy is? You'll find it out in the next chapter!<strong>

**I just wanted to share my other writing tip with you guys. If you feel that watching drama's isn't enough for inspiration, think of yourself! Think of all the good times and the bad things that had happen in your life. Use your own experience! Because you know what? The readers will somehow get to know you better and it'll make the story more exciting!**

**Do you have any exciting experiences? Write them down with the review or at mail. Do you like my advices? If so, come and share yours with me too!**

**Alright, that's what I had for this time. Stay tuned for the next chapter! Bye ~**


	15. Chapter 15: Alan to the rescue!

**A/N:**  
><strong>Hi guys!<br>How are you? It's really been a long time. I'm so sorry for updating so late! It took me forever to write this chapter. I was so distracted from everything else that I somehow forgot about the story. Please forgive me! .**

**Anyways, it's great to see that it's still some OSR love out there. You know what? I've been working on a project of drawing the story. Well, not as a comic (at least not yet), but maybe I'll draw some covers for the chapters. You can go to .com/. I've already made a huge drawing of all the characters in the story, so check it out! :D Please review!**

**Arigato ~**

* * *

><p><strong>CHAPTER 15<strong>

The moon shone it's big bright light down at the peaceful, sleeping little planet. Everybody had fallen asleep. On a cold night like this, the only thing that kept him warm was his thick, fluffy duvet. He was in a deep sleep, on the biggest adventure in his wildest dreams. Suddenly something interrupted him! He tried to ignore it and continue dreaming, but the noise became louder and louder like a ticking bomb. Nothing annoyed him more than the sound of his stupid phone pinging constantly. "Oh, man… what now?", he said and reached for the phone.

He startled at the message. First, he couldn't believe what he saw. He could feel his hear almost jumping out of his chest.

_"I need you."_

Alan put his phone down on the night table. "She needs me? Something's wrong… usually she never send messages like this to anyone, especially not to me." If she really needed him right now, how in the world was he supposed to get up there? Nourasia was like two billion miles or maybe further away from earth! He couldn't just teleport to the planet, unless…

* * *

><p>Koji scratched his head. The sun was just about to rise up the sky. They had been waiting for him forever. Time was precious and they had no time to waste. "Where is this friend of yours?", Baldomar asked and was beginning to get a little impatient.<p>

"I don't know. He's been in there too long now… maybe something happened to him?". Baldomar shook his head and suggested that he should go search for him.

"Right…", Koji sighed. "Why does the smart guy always have to be the responsible one?". He was hungry, almost starving to death, exhausted and really just wanted to lie down and rest at least for a little while, but no! Of course when you have a friend who's missing, you have to go look for him.

While he went deeper and deeper into the cave he could see small eyes on the wall staring at him. As is that wasn't enough, he could also hear a creepy little laughter coming closer and closer. It seemed, or it seemed? It was a terrible idea to go look for a person in a freaking scary cave like this! Someone was calling for him at the end of the cave. At first he didn't want to go. He was so scared; he could pee in his pants. But he took courage, manned up and walked slowly towards the echo. "Rick? Are you there?", shouted carefully. "Rick! Rick!". The more he shouted, the more anxious he got. Something must have happened to him! He could be unconscious or even worse, dead!

"RI-", he was about to say when a bright, yellow light dazzled him. As soon as he got his vision back, he followed the light and came to a gate made of stones. When he looked down to the ground, he noticed big, fresh, footprints. "They're Rick's! Maybe he went in here…".

* * *

><p>They could feel a cold shiver as they heard his teethes chafe against each other in the silence. It was quiet, awfully quite. The plates were adorned with delicious, warm food and the tables were covered with beautiful cutlery, not to mention the fine weather outside the palace too, but even with all this, it wasn't enough to satisfy the king. Seeing an empty chair in front of him was an eyesore, a royal pain. The queen put her hand on his and stroke him carefully on the cheek with the other to calm him down. "What is it, Lao? Your face is very tense.", she asked him.<p>

"Where is the boy?"

She looked to the side and found the empty chair. _"Hmm… that's odd."_, she thought. They were used to have everybody on their places when the maids called for breakfast, but this was rather unusual. Nor the prince and Eva were in present. _"Where could they be? Aikka would never pass breakfast.". _She thought the same thing about Eva and any other creature. They didn't have a choice, but just to surmount it.

Later, after the breakfast, the Queen herself went on to look for him. But before she could knock on his door, she stopped outside Eva's door to see if everything was alright with her. It was dark, she seemed to have closed her curtains and block all the sunlight outside. There were wet and used tissue papers with some sort of black spots on it everywhere on the floor! With all that mess, she was very similar to a paper hoarder. Something terrible must have happened to her. Nori sat down on the edge of her bed and stroking her tiny black fringe to the side and found running, black mascara underneath her eyes. _"She must have cried all night…",_the queen thought.

She gave her a hard push and whispered "wake up" in her ear. Slowly and little by little Eva opened her lids.

"Good morning, young lady.", the queen smiled to her.

"Your majesty? What-"

Nori walked over to the window and shove the heavy curtains to the sides and let the beautiful sun shine its big bright light! "I am having tea later in the garden, would you like to join me?"

She nodded and the queen left. _"It's a good thing she said later…right now I'm so tired my lids feels like bricks. ", _she thought. But that was no excuse, soon enough she had to get up and get dressed. That was exactly what she did. Come to think of it, it was actually kind of nice of the queen to invite her. She needed some time off and a cup of tea would really brighten up her mood although she didn't like tea at all!

The maid poured some blue green tea into her cup and served them with freshly baked finger bites. While they were enjoying it, the queen somehow examined her, she looked at her eyes and noticed that the running black stripes underneath her eyes were gone. Eva could feel her eyes upon her. She asked if there something was wrong while beginning to fix her hair in case it looked like a bird's nest, but the queen just shook her head.

"You seem very quiet today…"

"Who me?"

"Yes, it's quite unusual seeing you like this. Are you not the one who's always smiling and such?"

"Hehe… I don't know what you're talking about, your majesty!", she said and tried to laugh it away. But the queen could see through her smile that something was bothering her. On the other hand, Eva knew that she was right. She used to beam of happiness all the time, but now it felt like she had to force a smile on her face every day to prevent people getting worried over her.

"Well, it's good to see your face, my dear."

"At least it helps take my mind of him…"

"Him? Who are you speaking of? Did something awful happen?"

"No… not really.", she sighed and looked down. Her eyes were beginning to get wet. "I just… I just needed some time alone."

"From who?"

"It's… it's-". She stopped. Right then she wanted to hold it in, but at the same time just scream it out loud. It was hard holding her tears back, but she couldn't show the queen how weak she was. She had to stay strong. But it didn't take long before one unfaithful tear slipped out through the left corner of her eye.

"I'm sorry…", she said and wiped it away while forcing a smile.

"Oh no, darling. It's alright, Say no more, I understand. I should have not asked a question like that.", she comforted her and stroke her cheek softly.

The queen was so nice to her. She was different from all other women she'd met. Nori was kind, generous and understanding. That had to be the reason why the people loved her. At a time like this, she was some kind of reserve mother to her. Eva felt safe, just like a little bird under its mother's wings.

After the tea, Eva bowed and thanked for her hospitality. The queen smiled as she winked to her, but sighed when she left. _"Something must be going on between them. I haven't seen them together in days!",_ she thought. That was absolutely right! Since the first day she came, she and the prince were like pea vine, inseparable. But now they were never together anymore! _"What could have happened?"_

* * *

><p>Finally after many traps and almost getting killed by those dangerous arrows on the wall, he arrived at the end of the cave. Right in front of him was a tall table looking stone, and on that table there was a treasure! It sparkled in his eyes and it was so tempting to take it, but before he could put his hands on it, he picked up a little rock and threw it in the middle of the ground. Just as he suspected, it was a trap! Underneath him, was a huge pattern made of rocks with paintings of lions, tigers, snakes and mice on them. <em>"Hmm… this must be some kind of riddle. Let's see… all of these animals are predators, except for… the mouse!",<em>he thought and stepped on a stone with a mouse on.

Apparently he was right! He continued stepping on the next to the next stone till he finally came over to the other side. The treasure was even more tempting than ever just by looking at it. It was a golden goblet with rubies, sapphires and diamonds all around it! _"Careful…",_he thought and lift it up slowly as possible when-

"RICK! THERE YOU ARE!", a voice all of a sudden shouted on the other side! Suddenly Rick dropped the goblet on the ground causing it to release a trap!

"STOP! DON'T COME ANY CLOSER! YOU'LL DIE, IT'S A TRAP!", he shouted right before Koji was about to take another step. Then the ground began shaking! What was happening? "RICK, BEHIND YOU!", Koji screamed! When he turned around, he could see a giant rock trilling down towards him! He quickly picked up the goblet and ran for his life! "KOJI, DON'T JUST STAND THERE! RUN!", he screamed like a little girl.

They released every trap they came across as they ran for their lives. Poison arrows flew through the walls as it began moving towards each other, cobras and spikes came up from the dusty ground and they could see the ceiling beginning to smudge! Fortunately they could see light at the end of the cave, but suddenly Rick tripped over a rock shaped as a pole! He landed flat on the ground and dropped the goblet to hold his hands between his legs. "AAAAH! I CAN'T HAVE KIDS!", he screamed in pain.

"C'MON! WE GOTTA GET OUT OF HERE, HURRY!"

Rick scrambled towards the goblet and tried to reach it, but it was too far away! "FORGET THAT THING, RICK!", Koji shouted and helped him up. When he got back on his feet again, they began running.

"AAH! I CAN'T TAKE IT ANY MORE! MY BALLS ARE KILLING ME!"

"STOP WORRYING ABOUT YOUR BALLS, WE'LL FIX THEM LATER! WE CAN'T GIVE UP JUST YET, I CAN SEE BALDOMAR!", Koji yelled. He was determined to come out of the cave ALIVE and began shouting Baldomar's name. "BALDOMAR! BALDOMAR! HURRY, TAKE OUR THINGS AND GET OUT!"

The old nourasian turned around and looked pale and terrified at them as if he just saw a ghost. "What happened?"

"THERES NO TIME! HURRY!", Koji said and dragged both of them out from the cave before the ceiling completely broke down into a pile of dust! Both he and Rick were exhausted as they lied flat as pancakes on the ground. "I can't breathe…", both said heavily.

"I could have died, man… what were you thinking?"

"Sorry, I got so caught away from that goblet I just had to get it… thanks, Koji."

"Next time I'll castrate you for that…", he laughed.

* * *

><p>Moments later after the lovely morning tea, the queen decided to visit her son and have a word with him. She stood outside his room and carefully knocked on the wooden door twice. "Come in.", said a voice from the inside. Nori opened up the door and found her son near his wardrobe in just bare chest trying to clasp his light, white shirt on. "Here, let me do it.", Nori said and buttoned it up.<p>

"Thank you, mother."

"Where were you this morning? I was waiting for you to join me for the morning tea."

"I was practicing with Keiran and Canaan at the woods."

"You have being constantly practicing every day without any intervals, dear. I am a little concerned about your health. You should at least rest a day!", she suggested in an anxious tone.

"I know, but is that not what you and father expectof me? To be a strong and mature man?"

"Of course! But darling, I want you to take good care of your body too. It is not a toy!"

"I am aware of that…"

"Why don't you and Eva spend a day together? I think it would be a splendid idea. She could use some time off too."

The sweet smile on his face broke into two startled eyes. Just to hear the name hit his heart like a thousand knives. His tilt his head down and sighed. "No."

"No? Why not? I haven't seen you two together for days! Did something happen between you and her?"

Aikka walked over to the window and scowled out at the birds flying by. The queen sat down next to him and put a hand on his shoulders. "Aikka, you know you can tell me anything. I am always here to support you if there is something bothering you."

"I do not wish to talk about it…"

"Alright, but promise me one thing. Promise me that you will take care of not only yourself, but those who stand closest to your heart.", she said and caressed his cheeks. "Please?"

The prince sighed and nodded. Nori kissed his forehead and left him to be alone with his thoughts. _"Giving him a little time to consider his actions will help him think of her. Poor girl, I simply cannot let these two lose what they have right now…"_, she thought and closed the door.

_"Eva… I do want us to be together, but there is nothing I can do. Forgive me. If only you could understand what I am going through…", _Aikka thought and lied his head on the wall. He could already imagine what his father would tell him if he saw them together. Not only would it hurt him, but he could actually go that far to even punish her! That's not what the prince wished for her.

* * *

><p>"Aww… great! Our food is buried down under that pile of stones, we're almost out of water and I can feel my stomach eating itself from the inside! What now?"<p>

"Give it a break, Rick. We're trying the best we can! Instead of just sitting there and do nothing, can you move your butt and help us?"

"Nope. I'm just going to lay here and relax till you guys find some food.", he said and drank out of his small bottle of water.

"Has he always been that way?", Baldomar asked and shove a huge stone to the side.

Koji gathered the rocks in his arms in his arms and threw away. Then he shrugged and told him that Rick sometimes was really nice and such, but other than that he believed that he was lazy as a pig when it came to things like this.

"Does he have a family?"

"Umm… I don't really know. All I know is that he has a girlfriend. I think her name was… Alice?"

"Huh! I wish that girl all the best and GOOD LUCK!", Baldomar chuckled, and so did Koji. After finishing throwing away rocks away for several hours, they found a small piece of their bags filled with only tiny bit of food. They took what they found and sat down to relax for a little while. Baldomar took a big sip from his sack which was made of leather and goat-like fur, with some green-bluish mucilage. Koji stared at it before putting his bottle down and asked what he was drinking. "This is a strength potion from the blue Choleil plant. It tastes absolutely disgusting, but it builds up energy to your muscles and helps the blood circulation."

"Can I try?"

He handed over the sack and Koji took a sip from it, but gave it back as soon as possible when he felt his tongue burning. "AAAH! Water, water!", he yelled. Baldomar gave him his bottle of water and he threw the whole thing over his entire face cooling down the "fire". "That was horrible! Thank goodness I brought water with me."

"That was my first reaction too when I tasted it for the first time, but over the times that passed my tongue began to get used to it and I can already recognize the flavor without even tasting it. Although it tastes awful, you should drink it, just not too overwhelming!", he told him and put down the sack right next to Rick's bottle of water.

"The sun is beginning to go down. Maybe we should prepare a fire, just in case?"

"That is very clever of you, Koji! If you and your friend go look for some wood and such, I will go and hunt for a meal.", Baldomar suggested and pointed to the north side of the forest. While he went to get Rick, he picked up his stick and went to the east to look for food. There were many wild animals in the forest. Just like on earth there were deer, squirrels, and fishes. The only difference was that they were extremely hard to catch because of their amazing camouflages and defense. Luckily for Baldomar, who lived in the forest for so long, he knew exactly how and where to find them, but because of his age and back problems, he decided to catch something small and easy, like fish!

When he approached the river bench, he could already see someone out there! He stopped and hid behind some bushes and trees only a few meters away to see who it was. What he saw was not surprising at all! It was them! They were huge, taller than Goliath, and had muscles on the size of a watermelon. Although their armors were as heavy as two tons of cars, they were extremely fast! He could hear the soldier's swords coruscate against each other and how the blades went right through the small piece of their bloody red helmets. These were not the ones you would like to mess with unless you want your head chopped straight off! "Are there any progress?", a deep voice asked. Baldomar crawled a little closer to see who it was. His eyes literally popped out of his scull as he startled at the fierce man in red and black clothes! _"Thoron!",_he thought right away.

"The soldiers are almost ready for battle, my lord. May I suggest that we take a look at our weapons and ammo?" They walked over to the camp where all the newest, most powerful and dangerous weapons lied. The young apprentice pulled out a sharp sword made of hard and glinting silver and gave it to his master. "Does it have your approval, my lord?"

He stroke its sharp blade and put his fore finger on the very tip of the sword. He nodded and put it away. The apprentice could tell by the look on his face, he wasn't completely pleased, but didn't dare to say a word against him. "May I ask them when they are planning to attack the palace?"

"ATTACK THE PALACE?", Baldomar whispered to himself. "Has he lost his mind?"

Thoron grinned and looked up to the sky. "Soon… at the break of dawn.". When the old nourasian heard that, he stood up and hurried back to where he left the two earthlings. Now it was really urgent! They had to get back to the palace as soon as possible and warn their majesties before Thoron made his move! Unfortunately he tripped over a branch that caused a big breaking noise! The soldiers heard it and made their way towards Baldomar! "I think I heard something between the bushes, my lord!", they warned their master. Thoron assumed it was a spy and commanded his soldiers to capture him and bring him back alive to get punished. But before they could catch him, he was already too far away and was almost near the camp. He began shouting Koji's and Rick's name and as soon as they got back to him, he told them to hide before it was too late!

"Huh? What do you mean?", Koji asked him and looked confused at his partner. "DUMBLEDORE! YOU'RE ALIVE!", Rick shouted and put his hands on Baldomar's shoulders. "Wha- Oh, there is no time for that! Run! Put some mud on your faces and hide behind the trees, hurry!". He quickly put his hat on and sat down by the fire pretending to be just a friendly camper outside in the wilderness enjoying Mother Nature's beautiful work of art. When the soldiers arrived at the camp they pulled him up by the collar of his shirt. "Have you seen someone running by here?", they asked in a fierce voice.

"No, not at all, sir. It is just me alone here preparing my meal and enjoying the nature.". The soldiers looked suspicious at him and pointed at two dirty brown rucksacks. "If it's only you out here, why are they two other bags on here!"

"Aaah… those were here when I came here.". While the soldier still held him up, the others conducted a search on the rucksacks. They found a bottle of water and took a sip from it. "It's still fresh!". The soldier accused him for lying and held him against a tree and began chocking him! "No, wait! Do not hurt him. Our lord commanded that we bring him back alive. There he will pronounce his doom.". The soldier let him go, but dragged him back harshly. Koji could only watch as the old nourasian was dragged back to his death. _"Baldomar! No!", he _gestured. _"I will be alright, do not worry about me! Hurry back to the palace and warn their majesties!", _he replied by gesturing.

By the time the soldiers came back to their camp, they summoned their master and tied up the poor old man on his knees. Along with the young apprentice, his master walked beside him in his longest and famous cape in crimson and raven black. "We found him nearby a camp, my lord. We believe this is the one who spied on us.".

"You filthy, old man! Apologize to our master!", one soldier said and kicked his shoulders so he fell on his back. When Baldomar looked up upon Thoron, his delighted grin broke into big eyes. "Stop!", he ordered his soldiers and pulled him up. His hands began shaking when he saw the eyes of his victim. _"These eyes looks so familiar… where have I seen these before?",_he asked himself.

"Your grace?", the young apprentice asked.

"Who are you, old man?"

Baldomar's eyes were beginning to fill up with tears, but he held them inside himself and scowled at Thoron. "Search inside yourself, young man. You will find it out, very soon. But please if I could ask this favor to pass me by and let me go.". For the first time, Thoron felt compassion and showed sympathy for him by letting him free. As soon as the ropes were cut off, he ran quickly back into the forest and disappeared, leaving Thoron having a mental breakdown. The soldiers were a bit concerned because they'd never seen their master treat anyone like that before!

"Are you alright, sire?", the young apprentice asked and put a hand on his shoulder. He shook his hand off and shove everything he came across to the side and went back to his tent. _"I swear I have seen him before, but where?"_

* * *

><p>Meanwhile at the palace, the princess was enjoying her day with tea, dresses, jewelry and everything a girl could simply imagine! She literally bathed in luxury and was dressed in the finest dresses in all Nourasia. For her, it was a blessing being born rich! Today was a very special day for her, it was the day where she and her future husband was going to her very first wedding dress fitting! She could hardly wait, it was so exciting to finally choose a dress to her special day. It was every girl's dream. Marielle held tightly around the prince's arm as they strolled down the halls heading to the royal wedding dress fitting. She was so excited she almost squeezed the blood out of his poor arm. On the other hand, the prince was not excited at all, but rather a bit depressed.<p>

When they got there, the king and queen and some of the royal councils, which this time were women, sat and waited for them. "Ah, there you are! Are you ready?", Lao asked her while giving her a hug. The tailor measured her waist, arms and legs to make sure that the dress she would fit, suited her perfectly. After gauging her, the tailor indicated her to the dresses. The room was filled with lovely dresses everywhere, made by the finest tailors in whole Nourasia. Marielle felt like a little kid in a candy store. So many dresses, so little time! Although she wanted to try them all, she found at least three gorgeous dresses she was happy with. Once she came out again and showed their majesties, the councils and the prince the dresses she chose, she went right in to the dressing room.

"Aikka, smile a little! Do you not enjoy seeing what your future wife will look like in her wedding gown?", the king shouted from the other side since they sat on each their sides of the room.

Smile? How could he smile at a time like this? Being forced to get married to someone he didn't really know and then enjoying her choosing her wedding dress as if he really was happy for marrying her? There was no way in heck he could smile! He wasn't the only one with a depressed face, his mother could feel his pain and thought this was simply just an agony. For her, the only wish she wanted was for him and Eva to be together, but because she was just a queen, she didn't have much authority to object to the marriage. If it was the kings will and for their kingdom's sake of future, nothing could be done. Both Nori and Aikka were so lost in their deep thoughts, they didn't notice the clapping in the background from the councils and the king. "How do I look?", Mariella asked and blushed.

The princess came out in a lovely white off shoulder chiffon dress with lace arms and shimmering sash. To the king and council, she looked absolutely marvelous. Even Aikka couldn't take his eyes off her! The tailor noticed the look on the young prince's face and jabbed their majesties to look at him too. The king smiled and suggested that everyone should leave the room, so both could be alone. "Wait, where are you-", Aikka was about to ask when his father gave him a little wink. _"Take the hint, son!"_, the king gestured.

When he turned around again, he blushed. The princess was beginning to zip down the dress and Aikka could see her gorgeous tan back. _"Her body…",_he thought, but then shook his head and blushed even more. Marielle smiled and went back to the dressing room to try out the two other gowns.

* * *

><p>Meanwhile on the other side of the palace there was a gathering for the maids. The head maid had the responsibility to plan all the flowers, decorations and centerpieces for the wedding location along with the florists. She began handing out the instructions and distributed the tasks that had to be done before the definite day. Everything seemed to be in place, since everyone was listening carefully. Well, at least everyone. Everyone expect for Yuna. "Miss Yuna, do you understand? Miss Yuna? Miss Yuna!", the old lady shouted.<p>

The young maid stood away from the crowd looking outside the window. Her friend, Sora, shook her shoulder and brought her back to the crowd before the situation turned worse. "Better listen unless you want your head chop off by over there.", Jori whispered as they got back.

"Does everyone know their positions?"

"Yes, Ma'am!"

"Good. Now off you go. You are all dismissed."

The maids spread and headed each on their side of the palace to finish the tasks they've been given. Luckily for Yuna, who didn't pay attention to the head maid's instructions, Sora told her she could come and help her with her task. "I bet you were staring at that human boy again, didn't you?", Sora teased her.

"I was certainly not!", she said with her British like accent.

"Liar! I can tell by you blushing that you stared at him. Tell me, what do you find so interesting about him anyway? There are plenty of stunning men here in Nourasia, why him?"

They stopped walking and Yuna smiled brightly. "He is so different from all the men I've met, Sora. He is kind, funny and a bit clumsy, but that's alright! I love the fact that he dares to be himself."

"Do you like him?"

"Well, I'm not quite sure yet, but he seems very sweet."

"Does he know that?"

"No, of course not!". Suddenly Sora's friendly smile became to a delighted grin.

"Well, speaking of the boy, here he comes! Now you have the chance!", she chuckled and shove her towards Stan.

"Huh? Wait I-". But it was too late. She'd already bumped onto him. Stan quickly hid the big bouquet of flowers behind his back and smiled. "Oh, hi Yuna!"

"Hi, Stan."

"How are you?"

"I'm fine. How about you?"

"I'm fine too. Hehe…"

Then it became very silent. The silence between them made the atmosphere become very awkward. Both were too shy and didn't know what to say. Sora put her hand on her face and shook her head. _"Idiots…"_, she thought. If that continued, nothing would happen between those two. "Say something, Yuna!", she shouted. Yuna's eyes became bigger and her face was as red as a tomato when she looked back at Sora full of embarrassment. "Are you doing anything tonight?", Stan asked carefully and blushed.

"What?"

"If you don't have something important to do tonight… would you like to go… out with me?"

Suddenly she heard Sora clapping in the background like crazy and jubilated of happiness. "Finally!"

"Sora!", Yuna shouted.

"Well, what do you think…?"

She didn't even have to consider it. "Yes, I would love to.", she smiled. Stan's heart began beating like a train. "That's great! I guess I'll see you later then… oh! These are for you.", he said and gave her the beautiful bouquet of flowers. Yuna blushed and smiled as she watched him wink back to her while heading back. "Yunaaaaaa~", Sora chirped. "Iiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiik! Sora, I can't believe it! He asked me out!", Yuna screamed of joy.

* * *

><p>While someone was happy as can be, another girl was out taking a walk to take her mind off something bothering her. Walking alone to some place she don't even really know was awkward. Usually she had someone beside her talking, laughing and having a good time. But nowadays, she couldn't stop thinking about how lonely it was not having a certain someone next to you. <em>"He must be very happy…",<em>she thought. She could still remember his smile and laugh that moment when he held his arm tightly around the princess. Now she just regretted that she ever came here. She should have never been happy for coming here. Aikka should have never kept his promise. "We should have never met in the first place!", she exclaimed and shed a tear.

Eva shook her head and began running all of a sudden. She didn't know where to run, but as far away from the palace was good enough. Soon after several hours it began raining when she stopped to catch her breath again. The shiny bright sun had disappeared behind thick grey clouds and it was beginning to pour rain. Eva began coughing and coughing because of her thin clothes. She only wore a long red t-shirt and a short jean. Without any further risk catching a cold, she began running towards the town. She stopped outside some sort of boutique filled with dresses. Those were not just ordinary dresses, but gorgeous wedding gowns! First she hesitated going in there because first of all she hated dresses and second of all because she was soaking wet! But she didn't have much of a choice, it was either going in there and warm herself or stay outside freezing to death. She sat down on a small, fluffy couch and relaxed.

A big, fat lady in burgundy skirt asked her what she was doing soaking the coach. "Aaah… I was-", she was about to say when she heard someone behind her shouting "there you are"! When she turned around, she saw a lady young lady with rosy red lips and white pleated skirt walking towards her. "There you are, sweetie. I've been looking for you everywhere!", she said and dragged her along with her to another room. "Huh? W, wait-". The lady whispered to her that she should be quiet and follow her if she valued her life.

When they arrived at another room, the young lady quickly pulled up a knitted sweater in white and tossed it over. "Here, there is a dressing room over there.". After changing her clothes, she came back and thanked for letting her borrow her clothes. "But why did you save me?", Eva asked her.

She told her that she was just like her in her age and was pretty much in the same situation as she was only a few moments ago. "Believe me, you were pretty lucky today!"

"Thanks Miss…?"

"Joli. And you are?", she smiled and held out her hand to shake Eva's.

"I'm Eva."

"Hmm… funny. I have never seen a human here before. Why are you here?"

"It's long story…"

"Oh, do tell! I love to stories!"

With that Eva began telling her about her past and how she met the prince and how they became friends and such. Finally, she told her about the promise he made to her. The promise that he would show her his kingdom someday and that's how she ended up here. For Joli, it was very touching for some reason. "So you actually know his highness?"

"Yeah… we're kind of best friends…"

Joli was about to ask her something when her boss told her that she had to get back to work! Suddenly someone knocked on the door. "Joli, can you bring some white gloves to the main dressing room? I cannot find them. It's very important.", a gentle voice asked and closed the door. After closing the door, Joli looked immediately at Eva. "I am very busy today with all the costumers and commissions today. Could you be a dear and give them the gloves for me, Eva?", she asked and handed over the boxes with the pairs of white gloves.

Joli told her to bring them to the main dressing room which was in the end of the hall. Once she got the boxes, she headed straight to the room. Suddenly she heard a familiar voice giggling from the other side of the door! Could it be? She opened up the door carefully and took a peek. Her eyes suddenly became bigger and she wasn't surprised at all. It was the princess! But when she looked to the side, she became completely dumbfounded. Right there, in front of her eyes sat the prince! "What do you think?", Marielle asked and twirled. But Aikka didn't answer. He just looked away and was really depressed. Marielle saw that and walked over to sit next to him. "Is something wrong?"

"No…"

"Then why won't you even look at me?". That was the exact same question Eva asked herself when Aikka didn't look at her.

Still no answer. Marielle sighed and put her hand over his without him removing it. "Listen Aikka… as horrible as this is, think of your kingdom and its future. Our fathers and kingdoms rely on us and if we do not take our responsibility seriously, it will all fall apart. I know you may not like me, but I promise that if you marry me, I will be a good wife and always be there for you. You can trust me. You know I have you in my heart and what I feel for you."

Eva couldn't believe her ears. She just heard the princess herself confess her love for the prince without any fear! To Eva, she was very brave. Now both just waited for his answer.

"Marielle… you are a wonderful girl. You are pretty, intelligent and courageous, but I cannot see myself married to you in the future. I do know my responsibility as a prince and heir of the throne, but you deserve someone better."

"It's all because of that earth girl, am I not right?", she asked and stood up to look him deeply in the eye. All of a sudden it became very silent, as if time had stopped. "Aikka, answer me! It was right, wasn't it? All of all the women in the galaxy, why her? Why not me? I am the one who will stay when she goes away. What does she even mean to you?"

"NOTHING! Are you happy? Nothing at all. She means nothing…"

Nothing? Nothing at all? Like as if he didn't know her anymore? Nothing? Tears fell down Eva's cheeks when she heard that word. Was she really that worthless? Didn't she mean anything at all to him? "Hey, you! What are you doing here?", a voice behind her shouted. Aikka and Marielle looked at the door and saw her eyes. Eva stood up immediately, dropped the boxes and ran for it. "Hey, where-". Aikka quickly ran and opened up the door, but Eva had already left. "Oh, your highness. Is everything alright?"

"Yes, but what happened?"

"Some kind of girl in red and black sat and peeped at them. I was about to make her leave when she turned around and ran away. For some reason she was crying too."

"Crying?". That had to be Eva, since she always was a bit sensitive.

She was so upset, she forgot the boxes, everything and everyone. It really hurt her hearing him saying those words. She just wanted to cry it all out in a place where no one could see her pain. As soon as she was back at the palace, she went right in to her room and threw herself on the bed letting it out. She sobbed and sobbed for several moments. It seemed like it would never end. She kept reminding herself of his words and thought of that as the solution for why he didn't look or talk to her anymore! "No, I have to stop crying. It's been to long now. I can't take it anymore. It's either him or me. I have to talk to him!", she told herself and got up to look for him.

Once she stepped out her room, she could already hear their familiar voice down the halls. Just as she suspected, Marielle and the jerk himself. Instead of busting in when they were in a middle of a conversation, she decided to wait to talk to him one by one so none of them lose their dignity. Similar to a stalker she began following their each move. Along with them was some sort of woman who helped them with the wedding locations, where they and their guests would dine after the wedding ceremony itself.

"Your highness.", the lady said and looked at Marielle. "I need them to come with me to choose the centerpieces for the tables our florists made with the maids. We need your approval and opinion on them. May I take her with me, your highness?", she asked the prince. Aikka nodded and let go of her hand. Marielle turned around and blew him a sweet kiss before disappearing with the lady into the ball room in the very end of the hall. Now was the time! As soon as she left, Eva took the chance and dragged the prince with her to a corner behind a wall all of a sudden! "What- Eva?", he looked shocked at her.

"We need to talk.", she said and held his arm firmly.

"No, I can't."

"What do you mean?"

"Unhand me. I don't want to speak with you right now. This is not the moment."

"Why not?", she asked and looked at him with big puppy eyes.

"I… do not wish to be seen with you."

"What?"

"Now please, let go of me."

"Or what? Marielle's gonna kill me? I don't care, Aikka."

"Please Eva, do not make this any harder. Let go of me!", he said and tried to push her gently away.

"No, wait! I need to talk to you, Aikka.", she begged him. But Aikka kept shaking his head and pushing her harder away.

"Eva, let go of me!"

"No, please! I beg you!"

"LET GO!", he yelled furiously and slapped her! He slapped her so hard, she fell down on the floor! "What part of LET ME GO, do you not understand? Can't you see that I am a prince and the heir of Nouraisa! You are just an ordinary girl, we can never be together, EVER!". Eva's eyes began filling with tears and now she couldn't hold it back anymore. Aikka's words really hurt her.

"You mean nothing to me at all! You are just like dust, nothing! Everything would be better if I just didn't know you! Now please leave me alone before I command the guards to take you away! I never want to see you again! You are the dumbest person I've ever met and I don't want to be seen with you. I would never, never, be together with you! Do you understand? I don't want to see someone as weak as you! Don't ever come near me again!"

That was the last drop. Eva had enough. Her tears really ran for it this time and the pain just grew bigger and bigger. Hearing the one she cherished the most yelling those painful words right in front of her and making her look like a fool really hurt. To her, it was even worse than death. She couldn't bear it any longer and just ran away crying her eyes out.

Aikka didn't feel a thing as he watched her running away. He poured out his heart to her, but in the wrong way. When he turned around he found his mother and the princess startling with shocked eyes at him. He could tell by their expressions that not only were he in trouble with his mother, but now he could feel the guilt crawling up his heart.

Once again she ran towards her room to let it all out there. The pain was too much to bear. She couldn't take it anymore, now she really needed a shoulder to cry on. Suddenly she heard a familiar voice down the hall. When she looked up, she couldn't believe her eyes.

"Eva? What-"

Without hesitating any longer, she ran into his arms sobbing and crying. He put his arms around her and held her tightly. "Alan…", she sobbed. "Sssh… it's ok. I'm here now. It's ok.", he comforted her while stroking her head. He could tell by all her crying that she was appearently brokenhearted. Aikka's words tore her heart apart and it hurt more than a million swords and knives shot into her heart!

"No one's gonna hurt you anymore. I'm here…"

* * *

><p><strong>AN: Phu! Finally done! Hope you liked this chapter, please review! Wanna know what happenes next? Does Aikka and Eva get back together again? Will Alan allow him? Who will she choose? Stay tuned for the next chapter!**

****Well, that was all for this time. But I want to inform you that I'm working on a new story of my on at .com/, with the same username. So keep reading my stories and stay tuned, my little riceballs! haha****

**SEE YOU ~**

**PS: **  
><strong>I noticed that some of you were interested in which drama's I've watched. Here is two drama's I recommend to all my readers:<strong>

**1. _"Boys over flowers."_ - it's super hot and very tocuhing. Love the story and the actors are amazing! If you like romantic and hilarious, but at the same time dramatic dramas, I highly recommend this one!**

**2. _"Love buffet." - _this is very similar to the first one, but have a diffrent twist on it. When I first watched this I couldn't take my eyes of my computer for days. It's so addicting because of it's fantastic story and very touching indeed. It's perfect for those of you who's still in school and if you're like me, who loves romance and triangle-drama's, I recommend this one for you!**


	16. Chapter 16: Over you

**A/N:**

**Hello, sun shines! How are you? Talking about sunshines, I can't believe it's only three months till it's summer! Can't wait! Aren't you just as excited as I am? Think about it. Sun, the beach, vacation and ice cream. Yum! Haha! Recently I've been watching all time classics like ****_"the lion king". _Oh, how I love it! The story, the dramatic scene's and not to mention the epic songs!**

**Anyway, did you like the previous chapter? As you could see, I gave Alan a bigger part of the story. So he's gonna appear very much in the story. I didn't think of giving him a big role in the story first, but when I realized he was needed, I had to include him in. I could pretty much tell that some of you guys were extremely passionate about the story by reading your reviews, haha.**

**Alright, I'll stop talking. Here's the next chapter! Oh, just a little tip! You might wanna zoom in to "250%" for a better view.**

**Enjoy ~ Remember to R.E.V.I.E.W! merci!**

* * *

><p><strong>CHAPTER 16<strong>

Both the queen and the princess startled at him as if they've just seen a ghost. Their faces were pale as snow even to be nourasians! They had never heard or even seen the prince that angry before. He literally exploded like a volcano! But that was nothing to be proud of. While his mother had a glance telling _"What the heck was that, dude? Are you nuts?", _Marielle was in only was he in trouble with his mother right then, but he could already feel the guilt crawling up his heart. _"Oh no… what have I done…?",_he thought as he fell down on the hard floor. Before Nori could come over and help him up again, he stood up right away and ran after her. He couldn't bear the pain or guilt, he needed to apologize. Aikka knew he had gone too far.

He was about to pass a corner, but stopped a few meters away when he recognized her voice. But that wasn't the reason why he stopped. Right in front of his eyes was the girl he cherished the most in the arms of another man! He watched as the boy stroke and caressed her cheeks while wiping away her tears of depression. Aikka could see it in her eyes that she was disappointed because he was the foolish one that she anointed with her heart, he tore it apart. And what a mess he made upon her innocence, no woman in the world deserved that. There he was trying to apologize, but it was too late. He had no choice, but to just stand there and regret everything he yelled to her.

Eva was still devastated from his hurtful words. It literally crushed her soul. She couldn't overcome it and kept on crying. Alan pulled her closer to his chest and held tightly around her. He comforted her and told her everything would be alright as well as he assured her that he would stay by her side and never leave her. At least not in a condition like this. She sobbed his name and laid her entire face on his warm, beating chest. He could feel her voice trembling as she sobbed and when he talked to her, she didn't resemble.

"Come stop with your crying, it will be alright…I will protect you from all around you. I will be here, don't you cry.", he comforted her. They held on to each other long enough they were oblivious of the fact that they were standing in the rain, although they were inside the rear courts of the palace with open windows. Alan could feel Eva's body beginning to get cold as ice. He suggested that they go inside before they become soaking wet and sit down by a fireplace to warm their selves. Eva nodded and Alan took her back in.

* * *

><p>She was really excited for tonight. Tonight was the first time she was going out on a real date with someone as candid and honest as Stan. Yuna could hardly wait! Even though she was insecure of if she really had feelings for him or just thought he was sweet, it was still very kind of him to ask her out. She had everything in place, the shoes, accessories and cosmetics, and was almost ready. The only thing she didn't have was an outfit for tonight! Without anything gorgeous she could wear, the whole date would turn into a disaster, at least for her! It would be just like a forest without trees! This couldn't happen. But suddenly a "light bulb" shone over her head, she knew exactly what to do! She put on her shoes and scurried away to look for her best friend in the whole wide Nourasia, Sora!<p>

_"She's what?"_. Unfortunately, she became very disappointed when she found the note on Sora's bright pink door saying that she was out helping some of the other maids with an emergency and that it was urgent! "Now what? I simply cannot wear this tonight.", she sighed and swirled around in her dirty, blue maid dress. She didn't much of a choice but to go looking for a dress on her own. After a few moments later, she arrived in the town with a gorgeous, colossal, white boutique called "kikyo" right in front of her eyes. It was the exact same boutique Eva, prince Aikka and princess Marielle was in just a few hours ago. By the time she walked in, she felt like a little kid in a candy store. The boutique was filled with not just wedding gowns, but beautiful elegant dresses in all shapes and colors. But for someone who's never been on a date before, looking for the perfect dress was like looking for a needle in a haystack, it was one in a million. Luckily, a lady in white satin blouse and pleated skirt came over and asked her if she needed help. Yuna nodded and the lady began recommending three beautiful dresses. "Is there a special occasion?", the young lady asked.

"Yes, I've been asked out tonight."

The lady smiled. "May I ask who the lucky gentleman is?"

"His name is Stan. I'm not sure if I really have feelings for him, but he's such a gentleman, he even gave me flowers. So I thought why not?". The lady congratulated her even though Yuna was still unsure of her feelings for Stan. After a little while, they both found the perfect dress for her date. It was a fluffy, light blue, chiffon dress with white laces on the top, right over the bust and pleated drapes under. Yuna thanked for her help and made her way out_. "I wonder what he'll think of me...",_ she thought and blushed. _"Hope he found a nice place we c-"_

"LOOK OUT MISS!", a voice suddenly shouted! Suddenly someone dragged her to the side before it was too late! A humungous horse carriage passed stopping hard on the ground with wild horses. She fell so hard on the ground she didn't realize that someone had landed upon her. When she opened up her eyes and looked up, she saw big green eyes staring at her. She blushed and didn't dare saying anything before the young man stood up and lend out a hand. When she was back on her feet again, he told her to be more careful next time. The young man was stocky build and medium height with gorgeous green eyes and auburn brown hair that fell in waves over his forehead. The more Yuna marveled him, the more she blushed. But before she could take another look, the boy began walking back. "Wait!", she yelled and ran after him. He stopped and asked her what she wanted. "Thank you for saving me. Is there some way I can repay you?", she asked him. But the boy just shook his head and continued walking. Of course he deserved some kind of reward, but to him Yuna just seemed annoying. "No, please. Let me repay you at least with something!", she told him and huffed.

"Anything?", the boy grinned. Yuna nodded. "Well… how about dinner tonight?"

Yuna looked at him with anxious eyes. "Tonight? Oh, I'm sorry I can't. I have alre-"

"But didn't you say anything?", he smirked. In Nourasia it was common to repay someone who saved another's life in some way, it was like a part of the law. And since she told him anything, it was if she made him a promise already. "I, I…", she stuttered.

"You do know that we always have to keep our promises, right?". Yuna had no choice, but to do as he said. "Alright…", she sighed.

"Great!", the boy smirked. Then he asked where she lived and she told him she lived in the palace. "I'll come and pick you up then.", he grinned and left. To Yuna, he didn't seem like a nice guy at first, but since they made a deal already, she just had to agree with it. But at the same time she felt very guilty. How was she going to explain this to Stan? Or was she going to tell him at all?

* * *

><p>Once they came in again and began looking for the royal living room through the halls, all eyes were on them. All the maids stared and whispered as they watched them pass by. It was as if they've never seen a couple of humans before. Alan could hear some of them whisper things like "oh, he is quite handsome.", "Is that her boyfriend?", "who is he?", but he didn't care. The most important thing was to be there for Eva and comfort her when she needed him the most. By the time they arrived at the living room, Alan quickly went to look for a blanket he could put around her. "Here…", he said and lied an immense, dull blanket around her. Eva puffed it tighter around her body and sneezed. "You must have been in the rain too long…", Alan said.<p>

"Probably…"

She blushed as he glanced at her with gentle eyes and pulled her mushy black bangs cautiously to the other side of her face. "Can I ask you something?" Eva nodded, but changed her mind and interrupted him before he could ask her a question. She knew what was about to come and was to embarrassed to talk about it and besides it was wiser to not rub more salt on the wound. He understood her right away by the look on her face. Instead, she asked him how he came up here. As garrulous as she was, Alan made up an excuse and said it was a long story just to avoid her bombing him with loads of questions. But Eva didn't believe him and asked him again and again till he finally gave up and told her. "Remember Steve in our class?".

"The nerd guy?". Alan nodded.

"What about him?"

"Well, you know his dad owns a high-tech computer store, right?"

"Yeah?"

"I was trying to look for you just a few weeks ago, but your dad told me you were "lost in space", on some planet called Nourasia or something… and since I was bored to death at my old fossils house, I decided I'd look for you.". He continued telling her that he went to his geeky old friend, Steve, and asked for help to find the planet by using his amazing computer. And as brilliant as Steve was, they managed to open an intergalactic portal he could walk through. "That's how I ended up here."

Eva grinned. "So… you actually missed me, didn't you?"

Alan looked at her with big eyes and blushed. "Aaah, aah… missed you? Pfft, I told you. I was bored.", he snorted. "Yeah right… who would miss you?"

"Idiot…", Eva smiled. As soon as Alan got there with her, her mood suddenly changed from being brokenhearted from the prince's words, to jovial and smiling again, at least for a little while. Alan knew exactly how to cheer her up, and in the right time too! It didn't take long before day turned into night on Nourasia. The heavy raindrops stopped pouring and stepped aside, letting the master of the night, the big fat cheese ball itself, shine it big bright light on the tired planet. For some, like Eva, Aikka, the princess and her friend, it was time to go back to bed and rest for the rest of the night. But for others it meant time to go out and explore in the dark.

* * *

><p>Stan admired himself in the mirror and looked fresh. He put on black blazer with stripes on the shoulders matching his light white shirt and soft mahogany pants. Tonight was the night to impress the love of his life or rather the woman in his life, the one and only Yuna. To Stan, it was love at first sight although he almost got hit by a giant vase. Yuna was his reason to wake up every day and smile. "Aaah… life is beautiful.", he sighed in awe. Once he put his shoes on, he took the big bouquet of fresh blue sakura flowers out the vase and made his way to his date. Just like Yuna, he was eager to know what she thought of him. But by the time he arrived in front of her door, he hid the bouquet behind his back. Oh, sweet momma, he was nervous as heck when he felt his heart pounding like a train. His palms were sweating rivers, his teethes gnashed against each other, and his knees were shaking like jelly. He was so confident when he left his room, but now he lost his dignity of becoming a man. <em>"C'mon, Stan. What are you? A mouse or a man? You're man! You can do it!",<em> he told himself and raised his fist up to the door. _"You can do it! You can… do it. You c, can… dooo it… y-". _All the stuttering made him even more nervous and he felt like giving up already. No! He couldn't give up just like that! _"YOU'RE A MAN!", _a voice shouted inside him and knocked as hard as possible on the door! He knocked so hard it sounded like an angry mob from the inside_. "Oh, no! Was it to rough? Oh, never mind. I've done it already…",_ he thought and waited. He waited and waited, but still no answer nor any Yuna opening the door. Stan thought that she maybe didn't hear him and knocked again. Knocked and knocked, even kicked the door a few times, but there was no Yuna opening it. _"That's weird. Isn't she supposed to be here by now?",_ he thought and knocked once more. _"Where could she be?"_

* * *

><p>"Do you think they'll let me stay?"<p>

"Well, they let me stay… so why not?"

"Alright… if you say so.", he said and looked at her with a raised brow while pulling the puny little blanket down on the floor. She felt a little guilty for not lending him her bed instead of sleeping on the floor. But he insisted that she should be the one sleeping on the bed instead. She had a rough day and he understood that. "Sorry, Alan…", she apologize one more time as she tucked herself in the massive white duvet. "Don't think about it. Just go to bed.". She nodded and closed her tired lids with running black mascara underneath.

"Good night, Alan."

"Night."

Both closed their eyes and went to sleep. Sharing room with a friend, especially a boy, wasn't unusual to Eva. Back at the boarding school she used to share rooms with all kinds of people. From the smart ones, to the obnoxious creepy dudes and girls. But to Alan this was something completely new. To him, Eva was not just a best friend, but a very close friend and that kinda made the atmosphere a bit awkward. He could still remember that one moment when the mean jockeys bullied him and she rescued him by her rough tongue. That was the first time someone stood up for him, and since that day they became good friends. Since the first time she took a step into the class, he developed an interest for her immediately. She was so different from all the other people- especially girls - he met. With a dual colored hair, sharp earrings, and rebellious attitude, she stood out from most other people and he actually liked that.

But the Eva he saw and held just a few moments ago, was not the Eva she used to be. She was weak, defenseless and hurt. He knew something must have happened, but by being as a good friend as he could be, he stood by her side and comforted her when she needed to. This wasn't just something Alan felt; Eva could feel it as well. It was very humiliating for her and she was really hurt, but since Alan was sleeping so good, she waited till he was in a deep sleep - which the snoring was a sign of - and let it out quietly. "Aikka…", she sobbed. "I'm trough with you…". But even if she cried as quiet as a mouse, Alan opened up his eyes and heard her sobbing. He felt really pity for her.

* * *

><p>He and Eva weren't the only ones who were asleep. Outside a familiar, blue door was a tired, tan, young man sleeping with drool hanging out the corner on his mouth. The poor guy had been waiting for the love of his life forever. He knocked and knocked, but still no one answered. Stan thought that she must have been given a task by the head maid and was about to finish her work and come over later. So he decided to sit down outside her door and wait. But after two anxious hours later, she still didn't show up. <em>"Maybe she forgot…"<em>, he thought and waited just a bit longer. After another hour passed he fell asleep. Of course he was hungry and tired, but he wanted to show her how patient he was waiting so long for her. After three hours waiting for her, he finally gave up. He stood up by the sound of hearing someone laughing behind him. "That must be her!", he said and picked up the bouquet and ran to the sound. "Yuna! Wh-", he stopped and dropped the flowers. Right in front of him was his dream girl kissing another man! "Stan! Ah… this is not what it looks like."

"Oh really? Then I assume that must be your brother?", he snorted and shook his head as he passed them. Yuna let go of the other guys hand and went after Stan and stopped him by holding down his hand. "Stan. Please…", she begged him. "Let me explain.". He shoved her to the side and continued walking, but stopped a few meters away to tilt his head to the side. "Have you any idea how long I've waited for you?", he said annoyed and went back to his room. He felt a little dizzy and lied down on his bed. "I can't believe it…" After a long and hard day for everyone, it was time to rest their precious little eyes.

* * *

><p>The next morning Eva woke up with a big head ache. It felt like she was hit by a giant hammer on the head. She was too tired, not to mention dizzy, to get up and eat breakfast. Instead, she just wanted to lie down and rest, like most youths on a weekend. "Ugh… my head.", she whined and put a hand on her forehead. Then she noticed how awkwardly quiet it was in the room all of a sudden. The snoring and yawning was gone. She tilted her head to see if a certain someone was still there, but he was gone! The little pillow and blanket were gone too! Where could he be? "Alan? Where are you?", she asked and stood up to look for him. Suddenly she heard the sound of water issue from the faucet tap in the bathroom right across the bed. The closer Eva walked to the sound, the more the bad feeling grew. Suddenly she saw a massive black shadow behind her and when she turned around it came so fast it frightened her! "HEY, EVA! ARE YOU AWAKE?", a voice suddenly shouted, then began laughing. "Hahaha, you should have seen your face! That was hilarious!".<p>

Eva blazed of anger and slapped him as hard as she could! "Ouch! What was that for?".

"You idiot! You almost gave me a heart attack! Next time you do that, I'll rip of your balls!", she yelled at him. But Alan just continued laughing. "Take it easy, Eva. At least you didn't die.", he chuckled, but stopped when his face became as red as a tomato. He began walking backwards heading to the main door to the room. "Where are you going?", she asked him as she followed him to the door. "Aaah… aaah… just gonna… aaah…", he stuttered and looked up to the roof. "What is it? Why are you looking at the roof?"

"Y, your cl… c, cloooo…"

"My what?"

"Your c, cloth…s"

"Clones?"

Alan shook his head and tried to tell her, but he was too embarrassed. "Clo…ths…", he stuttered while sweating as if the room was some kind of oven.

"Clowns? Of for crying it out loud, speak English!"

"YOUR CLOTHES!", he shouted and blushed from cheek to cheek. Eva looked confused at him first, but when she looked down she looked up at him immediately and blushed. She got so caught up from trying to get a real answer from him; she didn't realize she was just wearing a tiny romantic white lace bra with a light pink bow in the middle and a matching hipster! She was about to scream when Alan, which was wearing an unbuttoned shirt on, fell on top of her on the ground when he suddenly was shoved down by someone opening the door! Both blushed as they stared into each other's eyes. "Good morning, Eva! I hope y-". The maids gasped in choir when they saw the two lovebirds on the floor in a posture like that! "What is this? Who are you, young man?", the queen asked and pulled him up.

"Aaaah…. Aaah…"

"Ah?"

"This is my friend, Alan, your majesty. She raised a brow and took a look at him while walking around him. "It's not what it looked like, your majesty…. he just…"

"No need to explain…", she cough. "Come meet me in front of the palace when you're decent. Both of you.", she looked at Alan and left. When the queen left the two alone, Alan glanced over at Eva still blushing, but asked who that was. She explained that it was the queen and somehow told him to be more careful. "What a first impression!", the maids giggled as they also left the room. "Did you see that? Miss Eva must be very lucky. He's so gallant!", they all awed. As soon as the maids left them, they began looking for something decent they could wear. The wardrobe was filled with piles of clothes in kinds of patterns and colors, but unfortunately there was nothing but a bunch of girly dresses for only Eva to wear. "I guess you just have to wear the same clothes.", she told him and picked a random dress nearest the door. He sighed and sat down waiting for her while she was in the bathroom changing clothes

_"Wow…",_he thought and blushed as he watched her walk out the bathroom door with gorgeous pastel pink chiffon bandeau dress. To Eva, wearing a dress was more embarrassing than letting Alan see her half-naked. But to Alan, right that moment, Eva was the most beautiful girl he'd ever seen. "You should wear dresses more often!", he teased her. "Shut up…", she blushed. When they walked out the door to look for the queen they came across a familiar young man. He bowed and greeted them good morning as well as he complimented how lovely Eva looked in her dress. She thanked him and smiled. "May I ask where you are heading?"

"Yeah… we're looking for the queen."

"With those clothes?", he asked and pointed at Alan who still didn't get the compliment he said to Eva out of his head. "Alan!", Eva jabbed him.

"Huh? Oh, these? Sorry, I didn't take anything else with me…". Suddenly an idea hit Eva! First she grinned at Alan and then turned to Keiran with a sweet smile. _"Why do I feel some sort of bad aura here?",_Alan thought and felt a shiver down his spines.

"Say Keiran… you wouldn't happen to have any clothes he could borrow?", Eva asked.

"Oh, heck no, woman! I'm not gonna wear fancy clothes!"

Keiran chuckled. "Well it's either that or smelling like a someone's behind in front of her majesty. Which do you prefer the most?".

"FINE.". Finally after Keiran's convincing speech of wisdom, Alan gave up and followed him with Eva to his wardrobe with the most astonishing clothes only they could imagine! _"If only I were a guy…",_Eva thought and stroke one of Keiran's smooth shirts made of silk. He showed them around in his wardrobe, which literally looked similar to a walk in closet. After looking through his many wonderers of shirts and such, Alan found at least two outfits he was satisfied with. The first one he came out with after changing was a loose pants with matching white V-neck shirt exposing his bare chest. Keiran noticed Eva's heavy blush and suggested that he should find a blazer to cover up. Alan nodded and went back to look.

* * *

><p>"I wasn't that drunk…"<p>

"Wasn't that drunk? Rick, you were hugging Baldomar while screaming: DUMBLEDORE! YOU'RE ALIVE!"

"Oh, ok… maybe I was a _little _too drunk…hehe….", he said and scratched his head pretending that nothing happened. Baldomar sat beside him and asked him how he became so drunk. Rick shrugged and told him he didn't remember. He told him that he thought he drank water and not alcohol. "The only thing I remembered was that I put my bottle next to some kind of dead animal with fur on.". Suddenly it hit Baldomar like a lightning! "You must have drunk my strength potion!"

"Your what now?"

"You did, didn't you? You naughty little kid!", he accused him and slapped his head just like the scene where Rafikki knocked Simba with his stick in the lion king. "Aw! Alright, alright, old man! Quit it! How should I know? I was drunk, remember?"

"Knock it off you two! You're being childish!", Koji yelled at them as if they were two kids. He gave them each their little plate of food. Fortunately for them Baldomar was a skilled hunter. If it weren't for him, they would have starved to death. After finishing eating, all three began planning how they could get to the palace in time before Thoron attacked it. It was hard figuring a plan on their own, but something had to be done! And that fast!

* * *

><p>Both thanked him, especially Alan, before they made their way to the queen. As they were heading to her majesty, they glanced awkwardly at each other and then back to their clothes. It was weird for both of them wearing those kinds of clothes they would never imagine seeing their selves in! "I thought I would never say this, but… you look nice… actually prettier than me! Haha!", Eva teased her best friend. "What do you mean prettier than me? Can't you see I'm the fairest of them all?", he snorted and tickled her. They were having so much fun they didn't notice the princess pass by. She turned back and watched them teasing each other as if they were newlyweds. Oh, how she envied her and how much she wished she and the prince could be like that. The maid who was following her waved her hands in front of her and asked if everything was alright. "Oh, ah… yes, of course. I'm fine.", she said and continued walking. Soon they arrived at the palace's outer court where the queen had been waiting for ever. "Your majesty!", Eva shouted as she winked at her. "Ah, there you are. I thought you had lost your way."<p>

"No, I was just waiting for my friend.", she told Nori and walked up close to her. Suddenly someone placed a piece of brown jacket in front of her! The guards pulled out their swords immediately and was about to attack him when he said: "A puddle, your majesty.". Alan stepped aside and let the ladies pass by looking surprised at each other leaving him walking behind them. "Well, your friend is certainly… charming, isn't he?", Nori smiled at Eva. "Um… yeah, he sure is something special… so where are we going, your majesty?". The queen pointed at a blue carriage decorated with elegant nourasian signs. Another guard bowed and opened the door to let the lovely ladies, including the young man, into to the comfortable seats where actually only the royals sat.

"Why did you bring us along?"

"I heard that it was some kind of festival, which is held each year, down at the town. Oh, how I adore festivals! I love the music, the decorations, the food and my people. So I thought I'd bring you and apparently your friend along.". Eva appreciated it and thanked her for her attentiveness.

* * *

><p>Meanwhile on earth someone was desperately looking for her lost child. She had been hanging up posters, calling, and texting and even asked the police for help, but still no sign of her beloved son. "Where could he be?", she asked herself a thousand times almost going crazy. Finally after asking everyone she knew, she stopped outside a familiar house and knocked on its door. Don was about to relax in his favorite chair drinking ice cold lemon tea when this insane woman began shaking him like there was no tomorrow when he opened the door! "Calm down, Mrs. Flynn. At least he's not dead, right?", he told her and shove her tacky hands of his shoulder. As if that made everything better. Tears were beginning to fill her eyes as she begged him for help. "Alright, alright. I'll see what I can do, but for now, please leave me alone…", he sighed and pushed her gently out the door. "But, but…", Alan's mom stuttered. Don assured her that he would let her know if he found something.<p>

_"Women this days…hmpf!",_he thought as he walked back to his dear chair. But once he sat down on it, he couldn't get his mind of helping her. "Oh, great! If only I didn't open the door!", he complained. Don hated it when someone disturbed him when he was in his zone. He picked up his phone and tried to call his daughter, but no one answered. "That's weird… why won't she pick up her phone?". He decided not to make such a big deal out of it and just send her a message asking if Alan was there with her. What he didn't know was that Eva's phone died out of low battery.

* * *

><p>What they saw in front of their eyes were absolutely astonishing! There were colorful balloons floating everywhere up the gorgeous sky, stands with delicious steaming food, and exciting games for everyone to enjoy! It seemed everybody loved the festival, even the elder people of Nourasia came out to enjoy the beautiful day with their families and friends.! To Eva and Alan this was some kind of heaven. Everything was so tempting and the people were really bustling and beamed with joy and happiness. The queen could tell by their looks that they couldn't hold it in any longer. She told them she had to take care of some business and left the two alone to explore the festivals diversity. "Hey, Alan! I bet you can't beat me at that!", Eva teased him and pointed at a giant pole with some kind of scale and with a bell on the top measuring your strength by hitting it with a big, heavy mallet. "Alright, but don't come crying to me when you lose your pride.", he said and made his way to the game.<p>

He paid the man and swung the mallet up in the sky and whacked the base as hard as possible. The meter went straight up from "weakling" to "very strong". The man clapped his hands and told him he was quite strong while clapping his back. Alan walked with a straight back and grinned at Eva and tossed her the heavy mallet. It was so heavy she almost fell on the ground! Once she got a hold of it, she looked nervously at the pole. "What? Afraid to lose?", Alan mocked her. "Shut up…", she said and raised the mallet and whacked the base with all her might. Surprisingly it went higher than Alan's! It went from "weakling" to "powerful". Both the man who operated the game and Alan looked dumbfounded at each other as their jaws dropped to the ground. When she looked up to see how high it went, she could neither believe her eyes! "Iiiiih! Yaaay!", she jubilated and was so cheerful she didn't realize she was hugging Alan tightly. The man watched how happy she was and clapped for her while smiling surprisingly. "Your girlfriend is very strong I must say.".

Both gashed as they looked at each other. "Oh, we're not…", both said at the same time blushing even more. Before the situation became even more embarrassing, Eva suggested that they should find another game. Alan agreed and was about to follow her when the old man told him he was a very lucky young man who found such a unique girl like her. "There must be no other girl in the world like her, cherish her young man.", the owner told him before letting him off. Alan couldn't believe what he said, but just nodded along to get him off his hook. After his words of wisdom, he went back to Eva who stood and glanced at some sort of bottle throw game. "Hey, let's try this one!", Eva said and smiled sweetly at him causing him to flash a little. "Yeah, sure."

Before leaving the palace to join the others, including the royal family, at the festival, he had to make sure his entire precious articles were safe in his mahogany brown room. He heard many great things about the festival and he couldn't wait to see what was so interesting about it, although he had been living in Nourasia since he was just a little child. But this time the annual festival was much more exciting than last years, at least that was that he hoped. Keiran was about to head out to the town through the halls when something familiar caught his eye at the royal stable. He thought it was odd seeing him there and not with the others, so he scurried down the stairs and headed in the same direction where he was.

"What are you doing here?", he asked him as he approached him. The prince didn't answer him and continued stroking G'dar's hard shell to soften his exhausted wing. His friend assumed that he had been out flying with G'dar again to let out his frustration and anger, just as he used to. Again, Keiran asked him what he was doing in the stable and not celebrating the giant festival down at the town. The prince just sighed and shook his head. He told him that he needed some time alone, just like Eva when she was broken. "I understand you are upset, my friend. But I want you to know everyone is waiting for you. Their majesties are expecting you.". Suddenly Aikka tightened his fist! "Is that not what they always do? They expect and expect, but I cannot fulfill all their wishes at the same time. Can't they see I just wish to have time for myself too?". The prince was absolutely right! He couldn't remember the last time his parents ever let him be without putting a burden on his shoulders again, especially his father. Keiran understood him and couldn't imagine how hard it was to put himself in the prince's shoes. "Alright. Have it your way, but please forgive me. While you are here moping, I will be down at the festival enjoying my time with Eva and Alan."

Aikka's eyes widen. "Alan? Who is that?"

"Oh, have you not heard it yet? It's Eva's best friend."

"Her best… friend?"

"Yes, I met him this morning and it seemed he was in a need for help, so I offered him my hospitality and gave him what he needed before he and Eva went to the festival together.". Keiran noticed how his childhood friend's curiosity began growing. Then as he expected, Aikka asked what Alan looked like. Keiran of course began describing him as a nice young man who cared and was very gentle towards Eva. After explaining him a little, Keiran told him he had to go and began walking leaving a confused, yet somehow jealous prince alone with his deep thoughts of a certain person.

* * *

><p>After playing games for several hours in the warm heath of the burning sun, they collapsed on a wooden bench near somewhat looks like a tiny park. Both he and Eva were exhausted and she could tell by the massive puddle of sweat on their palms it was enough, they had to rest. A little while later, Alan was the first one who regained enough energy to stand up and was eager to play another game. But Eva, on the other hand, was steaming and her body was reeking of sweat as her blood boiled inside her body. He noticed by the catatonic expression on her mushy, soaking face, she could need something to cool her down. Suddenly Eva's stomach made a growling sound similar to a lions roar! "Hungry?", Alan asked her while whiped the sweat drops off her forehead. "Yeah…", she replied almost closing her lids blocking out the blazing sunrays from blinding her. All of a sudden a pleasant sign caught Alan's eyes. "I'll be right back. Don't go anywhere, ok?"<p>

_"What are you? An idiot? Does it look like I can go somewhere in this condition?"_, Eva shook her head and lied one hand on her forehead wiping off the sweat on her glossy forehead. She really hated it when people asked her stupid questions. But her harsh temper broke into a laugh when a flash of memories back at school appeared in her mind. She could still remember that day when the teacher's told the children at the boarding school that it was no such thing as a stupid question. "Oh, yeah? Can you take your pants off? Is that a stupid question?", a student once asked and woke up the whole class bursting out in laughter. People scowled at her and gave her ugly glances as if she was some kind of psychopath just released from the nuthouse laughing her mind off on the bench! She could even remember the time when she slept over at a friend's house and asked her if she could borrow her toothpaste, since she left hers home, when her friend asked her with an obnoxious look: "what for?". What for? To Eva that was beyond the stupidest questions she'd ever heard. What for? Seriously? "For my armpits. Ok, I need toothpaste for my armpits…isn't that what you use toothpaste for?", she frowned and grabbed her toothpaste.

While she sat and laughed so hard her stomach began aching even more than her hunger, Alan left to find something they could eat. When the pleasant sign of a big crowd stood around a man shouting that he sold somewhat Alan thought as food, he was relieved. He scurried down the carpet of dust and cobble stones heading towards the man. Once he got there he suddenly lost his appetite! Inside the man's burgundy squared cart, lied boxes and crates full of glowing, slimy, still living worms packed inside some sort of bread bun! The moment Alan saw it he just wanted to run away horrified by the look of it or puke inside the man's cart! For one moment he stood and considered if he should challenge himself by trying it, since he got his extraordinary taste buds genetically from his dad, or once again, flee. "Do you want some?", the nouraisan asked him and smiled friendly. Because he seemed so poor by the look of his ripped and dirty, old clothes, Alan felt compassion towards him, sighed and bought at least two small buns of worms from him. "Ok, if I die… at least she'll die with me.", he chuckled a bit and imagined Eva's reaction when he gives her the bun.

* * *

><p>The prince wasn't the only one struggling to find an answer within him. In a dark room where no light was seen, a devastated, broken hearted, crushed young man lied on his bed slowly letting his pain out. Oh, how bitter it was looking into happiness through another man's eyes. He could tell by the look on her face how happy she was with the other guy. Not to mention how she kissed him. It really broke him. She was the woman, the dream girl, the love of his life, and he never got the chance to tell her his feelings. His love for her was so strong he even sacrificed his sleep waiting for her, but how could she?<p>

* * *

><p>"THEY'RE GONE!"<p>

"Gone? What do you mean gone?"

"I think they knew that someone was spying on them and packed their things to run away and attack the palace immediately before we could get there!"

"IMPOSSIBLE!", Baldomar yelled with big eyes. "How did they know? We were as quiet as mice!". Then both Koji and the old nourasian turned their attention to Rick. At first he looked innocently at them and didn't know what they meant, but after a few seconds later he began walking backwards not knowing that it was a tree behind him! "What? You're accusing me?", he shouted and held his fist up ready to defend himself. "If you weren't the one who woke up in the middle of the night to take dump near their camp, then I don't know…", Koji shrugged, but still looked angrily at him.

"FINE! It was me then… I think…". Because of his amount of alcohol by drinking Baldomar's strength potion, he didn't remember anything. "AAAAAAAAAAAAAARGH! WHY ARE YOU SO DUMB, BOY?", Baldomar shouted and tore his hair. "YOU GIVE ME MORE GRAY HAIR THAN I NEED!". Before the two began bickering again, Koji stopped them and suggested that they gather their things and made their way to the palace before Thoron. "GUYS! PLEASE! We need to get to the palace before Thoron!", he frowned.

* * *

><p>She stood up the sound of cheerful melodies and the crowd of people going crazy screaming and jubilating! Then she saw it. Immense floats in all kinds of shapes with the colors of the rainbow and beautiful flowers decorated on to them marched through the town down heading for the end of the street. The nourasians were known for their diversity of creativity regarding the annual festival this year. Most of the floats were really astonishing with their dark green vinyl fringes, soft pastel floral sheets, and Arabic-like laces. Eva watched as the glitters of the floats sparkled in the shiny sun and how amused the audience was. Suddenly someone put fat arms around her tightly and tried to drag her with him! Eva tilted her head and heard a hideous laughter coming from not only one scary man, but a whole group of obnoxious nourasian men wearing greasy brown t-shirts with dirty brown and red spots on them and a raven black hood on top! She tried to fight loose, but the man holding her, held her tighter and shove her to the others rapidly! The other man grinned maliciously at her as he grabbed her by the wrist. The group dragged her further away from the crowd into the dark shadows of the smoky alleys.<p>

"Let go of me!", Eva screamed and pulled her wrist out of the man's tight grip. "Wow, wow, wow! Slow down, missy. We're not going to hurt you… we just want to play…", they grinned and walked closer towards her. Eva had a bad feeling about this. The closer they approached her, the further she walked back, not realizing she was trapped by a wall of bricks behind her. Her heart beat faster than a cheetah as the fear grew bigger and bigger. Then all of a sudden one of them stroked and captured her! But there was nothing that could stop her now. It was either risking being kidnapped or even raped by those scary predators or escape! Quickly she bit his hand and tried to run for it, but the other in the group blocked her way and slammed her arms onto the wall incredibly hard! She could feel the veins inside her arms almost exploding by the man squeezing them tightly. As loud as possible she screamed for help, but the man put his hand on her and grinned horribly. "No one can hear you and there's no one who can help you...", he whispered in a cruel tone. Suddenly he began unbuttoning the front on her dress slowly! Eva wriggled and tried to get her arms free, but it was no use! Little by little her undergarments were beginning to reveal. She looked horrified at the man and saw his malicious grin as he stared at her bust! Then she knew what he was thinking. "NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!", she shrieked. The man soaked his lips with slimy spit and was about to lick her breasts when- "UN SEKAI N'URAMA BERAR!"

A shining blue arrow hit the man's left arm causing him to fall unconsciously on the ground! Suddenly someone pulled her along and ran far away from the hideous pack of predators! They ran so fast Eva couldn't see who was dragging her, but she was certain that she was being rescued by a good guy. After running a few kilometers away from the dark alley they stopped behind a rusty, copper brick wall to catch their breath. Eva was so tired her knees were tempting her to break down on the ground like melting butter on a hot frying pan. She was about to thank her savior when her eyes widen as she startled at him. "Aikka?", she stared at him with big eyes. He pulled down his red cloak and revealed his tan skin and sweaty golden fringes. The prince could feel the anger inside her and knew what was about to come. "What are you doing here? Why did you save me?", she asked furiously and demanded an answer. Quickly as possible he tossed her onto the wall, holding tightly around her wrist to hinder her from running away. Eva both confused and angry at him and considered him worse than the predators or as a threat. He looked at her with cautious, but somewhat complacent eyes and sighed. "I need to speak with you.". Only those last three words were enough to make her short temper rise again. Before he could say another word, she pulled her wrists off the wall and was about to run away again when the prince quickly stopped her by holding his arms around her from her back. Eva felt her anger slowly fading away to a warm, somehow longing feeling inside her heart. The more he begged her to stay, the more she wanted to escape. To run away, run away from her problems instead of facing them, like she always did. She couldn't bear talking with him about the pain both shared between them. Instead she wanted to vengeance what he did to her, causing her all the pain he could never imagine. She wanted him to know what it felt being treated like a dog, giving him the cold shoulder and ignoring him by turning her heart as freezing as ice. Nor talking to him, nor even look at him! Just like he did to her. "Please, let me speak to you!", he begged her. But now she tried to break free more than ever. "I don't want to talk to you!", she shouted and shed a tear.

When Aikka saw the tear drops running down her rosy cheeks, he finally let her go, but still held on to her wrist. "Eva…please, I need to speak with you.", he said softly and tried to calm her down before he could say another word. It was an awkward silence between them as they glanced at each other with mixed feelings. But the question Eva asked next broke it and Aikka's eyes widen as well as his ears sharpened as if he couldn't believe what she just said. "Why? Why me? I thought you never wanted to see me again!", she shouted and referred to the pain in her pounding, weak heart. Then she said something that suffered her even more. For a second the whole world stopped spinning while she waited for his answer. "WHY?", she yelled louder.

"BECAUSE! Because…", he started, but stopped. Now he couldn't even figure out what to tell her! Was it really that hard finding a reason? Eva lost her patient and asked him again, but still no answer, just like before when she asked him why he never looked nor spoke to her!

"Because what? Say it! Speak!", she yelled loud enough for him to hear it, but the prince just pretended he didn't hear her, somehow ignoring her. To Eva, it felt like he just came and saved her just to make it worse for her, to hurt her even more by letting her see him just when she tried to forget him. And now he couldn't even find an answer. She tried to forget about what happened between them, that time when he broke her heart, that time when she was completely devastated, but it was impossible. Her heart wouldn't let her, it was impossible to forget him, because she knew exactly how much he meant to her. Unfortunately, the prince was too blind to know his feelings for her. Something that really broke her spirit.

"What do you want from me, Aikka?", she sobbed and put her hands on her face covering her weak-looking face. The prince came closer and put his finger onto hers and looked deeply into her eyes with his sky blue eyes. "I want to prove to you that you really mean something to me. Please, I beg you… give me another chance.". "Something? Another chance?". Eva shove him away and shed more tears. Asking for another chance to fix a broken relationship was as coarse as backstabbing your best friend. How could he? After all that she had been through, was she really willing to give him another chance? "No.", she said firmly. Aikka pretended he didn't hear that and asked again. But Eva continued and refused giving him another chance. "Why not?". Did she really need to tell him? Couldn't he see how much had she suffered already? Was it really necessary to tell him? Eva let all her tear drops run a marathon down her cheeks and it really hurt him seeing her that way, hurt and empty.

"Because I hate you! Just like you told me, you don't mean anything to me! I trusted you, I believed you, but how could you? I thought we were more than friends, that I meant at least something to you! And all the things you said left them running through my head. But now I know I was just conceited when I thought you would always stand by my side and be there for me… so when you think you know the way to go, I'm better. You underestimated me, I am not a fool for you! And now you're thinking and saying we'll get back together? Don't talk to me, I'm done with you!", she screamed and ran away with tear drops drizzling behind her. She had enough, no more, no longer. It was enough pain. Now that it was all said and done, he couldn't believe she was the one to build him up and break him down, like an old abandon house. What she said when she left, just left him cold and out of breath. He felt a thousand way too deep, guess she let her get the best of him. Well, he never saw it coming, he should have done it a long, long time ago. He never thought she doubt him, guess she was better without him, more than he ever knew. He cautiously stood up from the ground, still not believing what just happened. It was really over…

* * *

><p>After running far enough from him, she broke down in the middle of the street crying both her eyes and heart out. Despite the fact that it was over, she should be smiling because it happened instead of crying. She sobbed between her legs to hide her "ugly" face when she cried. Suddenly someone pulled her up and onto a chest! "Stop crying…"<p>

* * *

><p><strong>AN:  
>Alright! That was all for this chapter! Thanks for reading and remember to review ~ NEXT TIME: What will happen to Eva and Aikka, will they ever get the chance to repair their relationship or will Alan be the one to win her heart? Will Koji, Rick and Baldomar ever make it in time to warn their majesties back at the palace?<strong>

**STAY TUNED! THANKS, MY LITTLE RICEBALLS ~ ^^ **


	17. Chapter 17: Caught in the middle

**A/N:**

**Hey, guys ~ Oh, you know what? You always bring me to tears –happy tears – when you leave a long review and of course favorite my story! :') Yes, that's right! I actually read your comments. So thank you so much! It means a lot to me! Just want to let you know that when I'm finished with this story, maybe I'll work on another. Not a sequel to this, but a brand new story with an amazing twist on it. So be prepared! Haha!**

**OK, you guys know what to do while I know what I gotta do to do. Haha!**

**Enjoy and R&R ~ arigatooooo**

**CHAPTER 17**

* * *

><p>She trickled slowly down on the ground and hid her face between her legs and let it out. Letting all the pain and the suffering he had caused her for so long seep out through her tears. For so long she thought they had something together, that he had at least some feelings for her. Naturally, it wasn't necessary if he felt more than just friends, but the only thing she ever wanted, the only thing she ever wished for, was for him to care for her. But how could he? And now that she tried to overcome her feelings, her sorrow, her devastation, how could he show up and make it worse? The pain was unbearable. It dispersed like throwing a stone into a puddle and watched the rings it caused convert into more rings. Soon she crossed the line into hysteria and sobbed as if the world was about to end. Her world. Suddenly someone pulled her up. Up to warm and loving hands. She could hear his heartbeat. It was fast and furious. But she knew she was in good hands. He held a tight grip around her and swore to himself he would never let her go and never let anything like this happen to her again. <em>"I will not let him hurt you again, Eva…",<em> he thought and held her even tighter. He listened to her dreary sobbing. _"… if he does, I'll kill him."_

* * *

><p>From that day on, he promised himself to shun her. Because he was deeply hurt by not only seeing her in the arms of another man, but actually watch her kissing him with all her might and then seeing her smiling delightfully before knowing she was exposed, was not only a humiliating crime against love, but a painful dagger into his heart. He trusted her and waited, but no Yuna came until she was too late. When she tried to explain, there was no mercy. His trust was like paper. Once it was crumbled, it could never be perfect again. So on, Stan was broken for life. She was his first love and now she was gone. <p>

* * *

><p>As for Yuna, she was regretting everything. Now she couldn't even call herself a nourasian since she broke her promise. While the guilt was slowly killing her, her closest friends – even her mother – was concerned about her. She was so lost in her thoughts, she didn't realize Sora, her best friend, was shaking her to death to come back to life. "Hey, Yuna! Yuna! HEY!". Finally after yelling like crazy in her ear, Yuna shook her head and looked at her. "What is it with you? Are you deaf or something? You have been this way since yesterday! Did something dreadful happen to you?", Sora asked suspiciously. "No, I'm just tired.", she replied with a slight smile. But inside she couldn't take it anymore.<p>

"Have you eaten? You look very emaciated. Would you like to join me for a tiny meal later?"

"Oh, no thanks. I've already eaten."

"Are you sure, dear?"

"Yes, I am fine.". But she was absolutely not fine at all. Inside she was starving, but because she wanted to spare her family and friends for anymore concerns and burdens, she kept it inside. "Alright. The others are waiting for me, if you want, you can still come.". Yuna nodded and smiled to make her conceit that everything was fine when it wasn't. 

* * *

><p>After retendering her back to the palace, just like before, he put a blanket around her and sat beside her down on the fuchsia pink carpet in her room with the tranquillized fire in front of their eyes. It was an awkward silence between them. Eva, because she was too devastated yet to speak, and Alan, just because he didn't have a clue what to talk about in a situation like that. But finally after a few moments later with him almost falling asleep from tediousness, Eva thanked him all of a sudden.<p>

"Huh? Come again?"

She smiled softly. "Thanks.", she said and stirred closer to him. "Thanks for always being there for me.". He felt his heart race faster when she laid her messy birds nest on his broad shoulder. "Sure, anytime.". Then it became quiet again.

"You know, since today was ruined… do you… maybe want to… go out with me again?"

Eva gave him a confused look. She didn't know to either be happy for "asking her out" or just be shocked.

"AAAAAAH! NO, NO, NO! Not like that, but like… we, two, go out- AH! Ok, maybe not like that, but… yeah… YOU KNOW WHAT I MEAN! Not like a date or something, if you don-"

"Yes."

His whole world stopped for a second. "Hold your horses! Say what?", he asked her with eyes as big as bowling  
>balls.<p>

"Ok, listen carefully cuz I'm just going to say this once… yes."

Did he hear right? Did she really say yes? Was this his lucky day? She really wanted to go out with a lame guy like him? _"I must be in heaven… aaaaaah. Alright, Alan. Keep it cool. Impress her, not embarrass yourself!",_he thought for himself while smiling proudly for some reason. "So do I get a kiss now?"

"Don't push your luck." 

* * *

><p>They had been riding for hours. If felt like an eternity riding all the way back to the palace. But because their leader was strong and determined, even for an old man to be, they took courage and followed him like the disciples followed Jesus. This was a real endurance test. If you failed, you lost your dignity as a man. It was easy for him because he was so tiny and slender, but for a guy weighting at least two pounds with his long black hair and "muscles", it was impossible to cross a mountain top decorated with frozen snow heading to the palace because his mount was tired and about to die of his whining and heaviness. But the others kept encouraging him, telling him that it was only a few kilometers left and they were there soon. Of course, like any other desperate idiot, he believed it.<p>

"ARE WE THERE YET?", he asked annoyed when they reached the very top of the mountain.

"No, now keep moving your butt, you alcoholic!"

"OH C'MON!", he whined. "You said we were halfway now!"

Koji and Baldomar looked at each other with glances seeming obnoxious enough to Rick. "We lied.", they shrugged and moved on. To him, Nourasia was like hell. Similar to the Sahara desert where it was burning hot at day and so ice-cold you could freeze your balls, it was pretty much as close you could get to hell. "C'mon, Rick. You can do it!", he said and walked over to support him by taking his hand around his shoulders and head towards the old nourasian as if there was somewhat bromance between them. After a heavy, freezing, ride down the mountain they came across a massive, strong river with waves taller than a wilting oak tree. Because they had been riding for miles towards the palace, over tops of the mighty mountains, through the so-called "friendly" forest and with it's "kind" creatures, and without any stops for even just a single rest, now facing a great river, they had to drink something before their throats and bodies died of dehydration. But of course, when you're on a long trip with a pack of idiots, at least one of them has to complain.

"HECK NO!"

"Alright. Suite for yourself. It is either this or die in the wilderness. Which one would you choose?", the old nourasian grinned and opened his hands to pull up some of the water. Rick glanced at the massive sloppy puddle with mud and not to mention the intimidating red snakes, disgusting seaweeds reeking faeces, and the hideous fishes swimming by. Should he really drink that? Or should he as desperate as he was, drink his own stinky urine?

After a few seconds later he realized whining wouldn't get him far and forced himself. "FINE!", he said and shove his hand through the water. "Huh? What the…?". Suddenly the rich brown color of the muddy water was replaced with deep crimson red! It was blood. Fresh blood. Baldomar's eyes cautiously followed its source. Then he saw it.

"Run… run! RUN! NOW!", he shouted and shove them towards some thin orange green bushes enough to provide a little protection! Suddenly they heard it. 

* * *

><p>They couldn't believe their eyes. They were not just dumbfounded, but shocked. He missed it. Missed the center of the target, the bull's eye. How could an experienced archer endowed with such talent, such skills and practice for years, let his arrow pass it? Did he not always hit the middle at the first attempt? It was nothing like him. They knew something must be on his mind. After watching him disappointing them on and on, the king had enough. Usually watching his son practicing was amusing and made him proud, but now he could feel nothing but emptiness. Somehow he felt pity, and caring. That was at least what his fencing master regarded by his worried expression before he left.<p>

Once the prince sat down on the bench and rested, Canaan took the chance and sat beside him hearing his heavy breaths, sweaty pacing, and unhappy sighs. "Are you alright, your highness?"

Aikka looked at his old fencing master. It was a relief that it was him and not his grumpy, bitter father who always dragged his name through the dirt. His gentle smile reassured Canaan somehow that he was fine, but still, there was something concerning him about his apprentice who would soon become the new king of Nourasia. His master was right, although he never mentioned anything to him. In his mind, the guilt kept breaking him down by building itself up every time he felt the agony of replaying her teary face back then. Again and again he was lost in his deep thoughts of her. All of a sudden his ear sharpened when he heard his old master asking a surprising question!

"Are you still thinking of her?"

Still thinking of her? It was a clandestine how he constantly kept thinking about her. If it was his will, he would burst out all the times, the days, the minutes and seconds he thought of her. How he kept remind himself that it was over and it was nothing he could do about it. But no. Unlike his father who put heavy burdens on other people's shoulder, he fought against even the slight thought of it. Instead he pretended that he never heard him and picked up his bow to continue practicing again. He gave the target a keen glance and picked up his shining blue arrow.

_"No…",_he thought and let it go. 

* * *

><p>What they saw was absolutely terrifying. It was a nightmare they wished they woke up from. They felt a cold shiver down their spines as they heard them shriek of horror. It could have been them, but fortunately their cautiousness spared their lives. They watched as the blood flood out of their damaged arteries, veins and filled their soar mouths. One after another the blade of the shimmering silver sword slaughtered its victims and soaked itself in their bloods. The river was now a bloodbath as the men discarded their corpses into the water letting the vicious fishes devour their flesh. Then he heard a malicious laughter. It could only come from one man and one man only. Thoron.<p>

This was precisely what he feared. A reason why they had to hurry. By the time they left the river bank, Baldomar scurried down to their peculiar birds and commanded the boys to gather their stuff immediately! Once they were finished, they headed straight to their goal, the palace. It was now or never. Risking their lives if they had to, it was now their duty to protect their majesties and the kingdom no matter what. 

* * *

><p>She had been good, busier than ever. There were small talks, work and the weather, but she knew his guard was up and she knew why. Because the last time he saw her was still burned in the back of his mind. He gave her that beautiful bouquet of sky blue sakura flowers, but she left them outside her door to die. And now that she was sorry for everything, it was too late. "Yuna, what have you done? You should have never left him nor agree to go out with that boy!", she blamed herself. But no matter how much she wished she could make it alright, time nor he wouldn't let her. Similar to a woman's heart, a man's heart is like a sea full of secrets and bitterness. She believed that the past shouldn't make someone bitter, but better. Therefore, she became as valiant as she could be and stood outside his room. On the count of three she knocked carefully on his door. Just like Stan, she waited. Waited and waited. It was very silent both outside and inside the door. Once again she knocked.<p>

"Stan… are you in there?", she asked. Then she exhaled and let out a big sigh. "I know you are still mad at me and I know I did wrong, but please… give me another chance.". There was a small sigh between every word she said. "If you do not wish for me to appear nor speak with you again… I understand.". The only thing she wished for now was to hear his voice again. This was a complete new feeling she had never experienced before. She had never been in love nor have real feelings for someone, but because of her situation with Stan, she felt something, but still she was not sure what it was. Even though she thought he couldn't hear her, he did. He was just around the corner. But unfortunately, all that passion and all that pain, was just a bit pathetic and it was far too late to ever look back. He had decided to move on. So when she was finished, she left without him doing anything.

After another exhausting and tiring day, everyone went back to their rooms with mix feelings. While some were shining brightly as the sun, others were still very devastated and insecure of what to do. But the fellow thing for all of them was to lay everything awful behind them and looked forward to a new day. 

* * *

><p>"So where are we going?", she asked and looked at him smiling like an idiot as usual. He shrugged and told her they could go anywhere she wanted to. At first she had no idea where to go since she felt like a tourist completely lost in a new world, but then it hit her like a lightning! She grabbed his tender hand and dragged him along with her to the royal stable hoping that a certain mount would be there. But what she didn't knew was that G'dar was already taken out by his master and therefore made her a little disappointed when she arrived there. Because it was his "first date" with her, he couldn't just stand there and watch her sulking face. He opened a gate and let out a gigantic emerald green beetle with humongous feathered wings jump out of its stable!<p>

"Are you crazy? We can't do that!", she protested as he shove her towards the massive mount. To Eva, Alan was insane.

"Sure we can! It was your idea! C'mon!", he chuckled and pushed her further towards the monster. Still, as stubborn as she was, she tried to escape under his arms. "Oh no, you don't!", he said and suddenly pulled her up bridal style! Once she was in his embrace, she stopped moving. Frozen as a statue, yet her cheeks were burning hot. She blushed as he gently put her on the mounts back like a princesses on her white horse and sat down right behind her like couple taking a carousel together. They gashed by the touch of each other's fair skin when Eva held the mahogany brown rope around the creature.

"Are you sure you can fly this?", he glanced at her with a slightly frightened look. It was really nerve wracking for him to fly high above the sky. Eva grinned because she knew he was afraid of heights, but assured him he was not going to die. At least not today. With an amazing pilot like her flying in the races, it was impossible to crash now.

"Yep, I rode it once with Aik-", she stopped. Suddenly her face turned grey when she remembered his face. Only the mention of his name made her feel even worse. Then all of a sudden memories of them riding together and smiling back those days began flashing in her mind reminding her that she was still not over him. Alan noticed this and shook her to make her come back to life. It took very long before that blank expression on her face disappeared. "Hey, are you ok?"

"Yeah… I just…"

"Don't say it.", he whispered a little annoyed. Eva took the hint and wanted to take her mind off him anyway. As they flew high above the crystal clear sky of blue heaven, he tried to figure out how to make her neglect him. Forget that he ever existed. That he should be the only one for her. Why? Her heart was pure and was like a bell. Whenever a fire burst out, Alan as the fireman, was always there to rescue her. And now that they were together, he wanted her to completely forget about the prince. Of course it was her choice. Who she would pick was very difficult seeing now, but in the end she must choose. Alan was so lost in his deep plans that he didn't realize they arrived.

Once they landed on the soft green grass, Eva jumped off the beetles scaly back and headed for the water. It was beautiful. A peaceful meadow with flowers in the rainbows colors, bright clear water, and birds chippering magical melodies. To him, it was pretty much close to what the Garden of Eden would look like. An oasis, a paradise, a perfect escape, a place where he imagined a life with the girl of his dreams. "Look, Alan! The fishes!", she said and pulled him along with her to the bank of the river filled with dancing purple fishes. It was breathtaking, absolutely something worth coming for! Alan watched her face beaming with happiness, exactly what he wished to see appear on her face. Whenever she was cheerful, so was he. Suddenly his naive face hit the water! Eva had pushed him in it and then hopped into it too! The following seconds later they ended up splashing and laughing at each other, just like old days.

After playing in the water like little kids again, they sat down soaking wet beneath a majestically willow tree with green leaves dangling from it's very top. For a while they sat down talking about good times and awesome memories back down at earth. "Hey, have you told your mom you were coming here?"

Alan's face turned from fair to pale as a ghost. "Oh my g- You haven't told your mom yet?", Eva gasped, but then broke out in a hilarious laugh clapping her hands ending up like a tongue-tied seal.

"You're so dead, you know that?"

"Hey, remember that I was looking for you, ok? So it doesn't count!"

"You're so sweet…", she said in awe, but in a sarcastic tone. After that everything became silent just like before. Not a single word came out from their mouths as if they were speechless. Alan gashed at what he thought was a compliment and Eva because she knew he took it seriously. But then of course, someone had to break the quietness. "Hey…", she said and looked at him while smiling. "Thanks for taking me out today…". Then she put her messy birds nest on his broad shoulder causing his heart race faster.

"No problem. That's what friends are for, right?". Then he gave her a smile seeming just so genuinely sweet with the right touch of shyness that unexpectedly made warmth rush through her. After that everything became even quieter than ever. But instead of her breaking the silence, he broke it with a surprise. 

* * *

><p>"Why are you so tense, dear?"<p>

The king paced back and forth in their master bedroom with king-sized blue bed with matching white pillows. Nori watched as her somewhat worried husband stirred even more back and forth, looking like a man who lost his glasses and tried to find them. "Is everything alright, Lao? You seem very upset about something.", she said as she put her gentle hands on his light blue cape from behind.

"No, I am fine…"

"Please, darling. Do tell me.". If it wasn't for the queens sweet and gentle eyes, the king would never let a single person live in their palace. "Has it something with our son to do, perhaps?"

Lao took a deep breath. "Yes, have you not noticed his practices lately? He missed the target, the center! He never does that!". She looked at him with big eyes. For the first time since their son was born, he was actually a little concerned about him!

"Something must be on his mind."

"Yes, I sense that. I fear that he still thinks of that earth girl despite that he knows he has a fiancée and a kingdom to take care of!", the king burst out in anger.

"Calm down. I am sure we can solve this in a milder way."

"No, I cannot! Something must be done! We must get rid of her immediately!"

"No."

"No?". The queen's pleasing eyes perished into fierce daggers. When the king was angry, it went out on the entire staff, but when the queen was mad, the whole planet could explode in minutes if it was her will. "Let the boy be for once, Lao! He needs this! Have you seen all the pressure we put on him? If you take her away it will break him! Please, I beg you, let him be.". The only thing she wanted was for him to give their son a little time to overcome his capabilities. Maybe it didn't have something with Eva to do, but with himself. As a mother, not only for their kingdom, but to her own son, she knew they couldn't coerce him to become everything they wanted.

"I know honor is very important to you, but please… let him honor you in his own way. Do not do anything to them. Let them be.". Those were her last words before she left him to think about it alone. 

* * *

><p>"You know… I still remember that day when you rescued me from those bullies.". It came to her as a surprise. She had no idea what he was going to say, but it made her a little dumfounded. <em>"He still remembers that? Wow…",<em>she thought and gave him a little smirk. But what he said next was even more surprising. She didn't see it coming.

"Since that day I spent two years trying to work up my nerves to talk to you…"

A smile planted on her face. "With no success…"

"Yeah… with no success.", he smiled back. But there they were. As sliver as best friends. It was only a matter of fact or a real miracle that two people like they completely opposite of each other would become as close as they were. Eva flashed as he looked deeply into her crimson eyes. Although his face came closer, she didn't move. She knew what was about to come and could feel his warm breath near her lips. But then she felt something tingling on her forehead instead! He kissed her forehead and then took her in his arm by a big embrace. "Alan…", she whispered.

"Yeah?", he smiled and hoped for another opportunity to kiss her.

"I can't breathe…"

"OH YEAH! Sorry!", he said and let her go.

Yes, they continued laughing and fighting like best friends should do, but what they didn't know was that a certain someone had kept and hawk eye on them and was boiling with anger. He didn't know why, but it was an eyesore, yet very painful, seeing her that happy with another guy. Moreover, how could she bring him to Lake Luna? This was where he promised to take her one day, a promise he spared and would fulfill on a certain day, but now that she was with him here, there was nothing but emptiness filling his hole what he once called his heart.

"Prince Aikka! Are you ready?", Canaan shouted and nodded towards G'dar.

"I will be right there!", he yelled back. He took one last look behind him and heard her cute laughter. Oh, how he missed her. _"Eva… if you only knew…"_

The day after that she kept spending more and more time with her best friend, Alan, while the prince kept breaking down more and more as he watched her giggling, laughing and having fun with him while he was in despair. Even though she kept herself busy with things to do, every time she paused, she still thought of him. She might hug him, laugh with him, hang out with him, but he didn't mean as much to her as Aikka was to her. Sometimes when Alan went to go get something and left her alone, she shed tears and sobbed. He saw it, but the prince didn't. 

* * *

><p>"When will we attack the palace, my lord?", his apprentice asked him. Their soldiers were ready to battle, to kill. He grinned maliciously.<p>

"By the break of dawn…" 

* * *

><p><strong>AN:**

**Alrighty then! Finally done with this chapter… thanks to my inspiration, music! I know, I know… a lot of sadness in this chapter, buhu. But hey! An author's gotta do what an author's gotta do! Will it turn out right in the next chapter? Hoho, find out soon!**

**Ok, guys. I have little announcement to make, but I won't let you know before the next chapter. So just stay tuned and do what you have to do for now! Thank you and see you soon ~**


	18. Chapter 18: Shrieks of horror

**A/N:**

**Alright, guys. Listen up! If you want to make the story more epic, then turn on some music! You should go to Youtube and search for: **_**"Joe Hisashi, Princess monoke symphonic suite.". **_**Watch out for this sign **_**"¤"**_** in the story, once you find it, play the song. Remember to play it at **_**(2:25),**_**very important that the song plays along while you read the story!**

**Keep reading till the end! Remember what I said at the end of the last chapter about a surprise? Well, if you read all the way down you'll find out what it is! So stay tuned! Enjoy, read and review ~**

**CHAPTER 18**

* * *

><p><em>"I'll get us something to drink. Wait here, ok?"<em>

Once she nodded he was on to go, to get them something to warm them up again from the cold. She gave the beautiful flowers in the garden a keen glance as she laid her head back on the golden tree with its blue sakura flowers blooming. Eva watched as the soft blue petals of the flowers slowly, but gracefully drifted down her nose and gave her a little tickle. The garden. It brought so many memories back. That was where she and he used to do everything together. Either it was crying or laughing, fighting or hugging, they were memories that couldn't be erased. It was there to stay. In heart and in her soul. And everything that she meant to him was now written in the pages of their history. But it was over now as far as she could see, suddenly.

Things were so different now he was gone, she thought it would be easy, but she was wrong and now she was caught in the middle. Even though she was with someone new, all she could think about was him. She tried to forget him, but her heart wouldn't let her and therefore she was nothing left but pain. What she didn't know was that she was not the only one suffering. Every time he went to get something or just leave her alone for only a minute, he saw it. He saw every drop of her pain shaped in tears falling down her cheeks as she sobbed in silence. Alan knew this all along. No matter how much he tried to win her heart, he knew already that it belonged to someone else. Someone she would never let go. If he had the chance he would do anything in his power to make him disappear. But who was he to do that?

"I can't… I'm just her friend.", he kept reminding himself. But just like a mirror, when she was hurt, he too was as well.

And there he was now. Just willing to do everything, even almost begging to see the most beautiful smile of hers on her face again. He stared out to the glittering stars through the window. Suddenly he felt a hand on his left shoulder. It had a sheer light tan color in the moonlight. "What are you doing here, young man? Should you not be in bed and rest?", a familiar voice asked.

"Oh, your majesty! Sorry, didn't mean to frighten you here in the dark all by myself."

"It's alright. But do tell me something… why are you here?"

"Just looking at the stars… they're so different from ours back at home."

Nori walked closer to the window next to him and looked out as well. "Indeed, they are quite massive and far more shimmering than the stars near the earth.", she smiled. Then she saw it again. "Are you sure you are alright? You seem very depressed. Is there something wrong, Alan?". His grey face broke into a surprised look. "Huh? Sorry, I didn't pay attention, could you say it again, your majesty?". Once again the queen repeated herself.

"Yes, I'm ok."

Nori stared right into his eyes, almost looking through his soul. "I'm fine! Really! There's nothing to worry about, I'm ok.". It became silent again. After a little while the queen yawned heavily and smiled gently back at him. "Well, if you wish to stand here all night and admire the stars, I will not hinder you. Good night, Alan…", she said and was about to walk back to her the master bedroom when Alan asked her a surprising question!

"Your majesty… before you go… can I ask you something?", he said and changed his glance from the stars to the copper brown floor.

"Yes, of course. What is it?"

Alan let out a sigh before inhaling again to speak. He looked at her with what she thought as anxious eyes. "What does it mean when a girl… cries… for a boy?"

The queen turned three hundred and sixty degrees around and walked closer to him with her night gown white as snow. "Cries for a boy? Hmm… I have never heard that one before… what's on your mind?"

"Ah… no, nothing special, really. It's just I have a friend… not who you think it is! But yeah… I'm just curious."

"If a girl cries for a boy, it means that she misses him…"

"Miss him?"

"Yes.", her majesty yawned again. This time she really needed to go back to bed. "Please forgive me, Alan. If only I could stay awake a little longer…"

"Oh, no. It's ok! Just go and rest, your majesty.", he said and waved bye to her. There he was, alone again. Miss him? It couldn't possibly mean that Eva missed him? _"That's impossible… it's over between them. Isn't it?"_, he thought. But it was somehow true. She shedding tears were for not for nothing. It had to mean something. 

* * *

><p>He carefully watched as she carried the heavy crates one after another from table to table. What he observed was terrible, an eyesore. Although she already apologized over a thousand times for everything and even took the blame for it, he was still not convinced whether to either forgive her or not. But from what he saw right then, he could tell how sorry she really was. Working hard, having horrible days – not to mention thoughts – and hearing from Sora that she was beginning to become ill, it made him feel a little guilty. But no! "<em>She has to learn her lesson. I can't just forget what she did!",<em>he thought and shook his head. To Stan, she made him feel that love was no use. That he should never believe in it again. Therefore he stuck to his words. Suddenly he heard something break on the floor!

_"Yuna!". _He turned around the corner and almost revealed himself! She lied on the dirty floor, tired because of her tons of duties, on top of broken glass pieces from the giant vase she accidently missed on the floor! "Ugh…", she let out a sigh and sat up straight. Just like her, he noticed the big cut in the center of her hand! She was bleeding, losing very much blood! Just the sight of the red fluid bursting out of her hand was enough to make her faint!

"YUNA!", Stan screamed as he caught her before she hit the hard floor! "Yuna! Yuna! YUNA, wake up! Yuna!". She was unconscious, almost looking dead to him. "YUUNAAAAA!" 

* * *

><p>When he came back to her room she had already fallen asleep, but just as he expected, dark circles and lines underneath her eyes raced down her cheeks again. She had cried while he was gone. He stroke her short fringe which was covering her entire face, away from her eyes. As he caressed her cheeks he took in all her beauty. To Alan, there was no one in the entire world more beautiful than the girl right in front of his eyes. "If only you could see… that I'm here for you too.", he whispered softly at the edge of her bed. "You don't need him… I'm the one who'll always stay when he walks away. If you only knew how much you mean to me.". Those were his last words before he placed a kiss on her forehead and went back to where he slept, on the floor with only a tiny blanket providing a little protection from the cold. Hopefully, the next day wouldn't be as bitter as this was. <p>

* * *

><p>"We can't just leave them!"<p>

"We must. If you want to reach the palace in time, there must be some sacrifice!"

"But-"

"There is no time, Koji! We need to hurry!"

"Yeah, the old man's right. It's better to walk by foot to the palace. It won't make as much noise as us riding there, anyways.", Rick agreed and nodded at the old nourasian. Finally he had recovered from the "alcohol" and gained a little intelligence back to his nut.

It was dark, darker than ever before and even darker than a raven's feather coat. Strange noises prickled between the thick bushes, they could hear an intimidating howl coming from behind them, and as they walked through the darkness they could feel a frightful leer watching them. As quiet as they possibly could, yet they were very loud. Koji because he hated it when it was dark and Rick, just because he didn't want to die.

"Listen guys. If I die today, for the love of God, someone please delete my browser history back at home, ok?", Rick asked and looked at his fellow comrades with an anxious look.

"What about Alice?"

"Yeah… well, I guess you should tell her that I love her too.", he shrugged.

"Silence! Stop speaking nonsense! Listen!", Baldomar shushed them and told them to crawl cautiously towards him on the wet and muddy ground. Not far from them were lights still shining in the dark. The fire was not just an ordinary fire, it was burning red, similar to the color of blood. "They must be here. I can sense it."

"What's that smell?", Koji asked and held both his hands on his nose.

"It is a blood candle. When you kill a victim, you place the blade of your sword in its blood and use it to lighten up a candle as a symbol of victory. An average nourasians blood does not smell like this. This is the blood of someone with a high position.", Baldomar whispered carefully. Suddenly a guard began shouting that something or someone spied on them between the bushes! They had been exposed! They could hear swords drawn out from their cases and fast and furiously steps began running towards them!

Baldomar's eyes widen. He shove the boys back immediately and told them to run! "RUUUUUUUN!", he yelled behind them. After running like crazy Koji looked back and asked him what about him? "Do not worry about me! Save yourselves! Now run! Hurry!"

"No, we can't lea-", Koji was about to scream when Rick grabbed his hand and dragged him along with him deeper into the woods! "BALDOMAR!". Koji broke loose from Rick's tight grip and almost went back to get him when he saw them coming. "FURFILL YOUR DUTIES! HURRY! DO NOT LOOK BACK! RUN!"

"KOJI!", Rick grabbed him for the last time and escaped before it was too late! Then they heard it. A horrible scream. 

* * *

><p>Just like always, when the moon had gone down a little behind the horizon, it was time to wake up. For someone it must have been a hell to wake up that early every day, but it was a routine for the prince to follow and part of his royal duties. If he didn't attend practice, it would cause him great lost if he ever got in a battle. But this time he just wanted to stay in bed, not because he was lazy, but he was tired and almost had a migraine. Every day began with a small heart attack when his master came to wake him up. "Your highness! Wake up. It is time."<p>

"Ugh… I don't want to."

"You don't want to? That is simply out of question, your highness! Wake up!", Canaan shouted and pulled the warm duvet away from his bed reveling his well-trained bare chest. Right then his life was pretty much like hell. In the morning his fencing master was the devil, but in the middle of the day and the rest of it, his father was the one dragging his name through the dirt.

He quickly put on a decent white shirt and pushed his golden copper locks backwards with his crown. Once he gathered his bow and arrows, he was ready to leave. They had to walk through the empty halls to get to the stable where their mounts waited. Just before he was about to pass the doors, he stopped in front of a familiar door where a certain young lady slept. "Prince Aikka!", Canaan called him.

He looked at the door one last time before he went off again to practice. Aikka had the feeling of something would happen today. He was not sure what it would turn out to be, but hoped for the best. What he didn't know was that his home, the entire kingdom and his people were in absolute danger! The insane man with the vicious laughter and malicious plans could attack them any minute! 

* * *

><p>His apprentice looked carefully at his master as his grin grew bigger and bigger. "My lord.". Thoron turned around and frowned.<p>

"Ehm… we found the spy. Bring him in!". Seconds later two guards tossed him into the tent. Thoron scowled at his face, but grew a gray expression when he recognized him! _"This is no ordinary man! He looks too familiar. Where have I seen him before?",_ he thought and was about to command him to sit up straight to decide a verdict to either spare his life or not when he realized his entire body was lifeless, dead. Then it hit him like a shot from a gun when he saw the grey eyes of his! _"His eyes! BALDOMAR!"_, Thoron gasped inside himself. By the time he realized it, it was too late. "YOU FOOLS! WHAT HAVE YOU DONE TO HIM?"

"HUH? I DON'T KNOW WHAT YOU ARE TALKING ABOUT, MY LORD! I WAS JUST FOLLOWING YOUR ORDERS!", the apprentice excused while desperately trying to breathe when his master strangled him onto the wall! "I'M SORRY! I'M SORRY! PLEASE, MY LORD! HAVE MERCY!". A piece of memory flashed back in Thoron's head. All of a sudden he let the young man go. _"No, this cannot be! It cannot be him! Why was he here? WHY?"_. Inside his brain again everything began spinning around! _"Why would he spy on me? Could it be that he was sent from HIM?". _He was about to lose control and have a breakdown when his soldiers brought him back to life knowing something was wrong with him! "My lord." 

* * *

><p>He stood by her side all night and watched her sleeping. Although he was tired as well, he wanted to make sure she was alright. That was very exceptional and strange of him doing something like that. Didn't he hate her? Didn't he ever want to see her again? Why was he even there with her? <em>"I must be going crazy…",<em>he thought and shook his head. Suddenly someone grabbed his hand as he sat beside the bed at the hospital and let out a moan. "Don't leave me…stay.", she said weakly not knowing who's hand she really held. Stan's face stiffened. He stroked her cheek as if nothing awful happened to them and they were always like this. Just like a couple.

"I will…", he assured her. From that moment on, he promised to take care of her after both seeing her becoming ill and hearing from the nurse that she had developed eating disorder and was very sick. "I'm sorry, Yuna… I should have known better. I'm so sorry!", he said and shed a little tear while tightening the grip around her hand. After that all the lights turned off. Soon he was in dreamland where everything would be alright. 

* * *

><p>"My lord. The soldiers are ready, our weapons are sharp as the blade of our swords and all we are waiting for is your order. When will we attack?", one of the captains of the soldiers asked.<p>

Their master's blank face broke into a horrifying grin. "At the break of dawn…". And so they did. Once all the soldiers gathered their weapons, furnished their armor, sat each and one of them on their horses, mounts or so-called beasts, they were ready to battle. Battle for what their lord had promised them for so long. Freedom, equality, power, honor, and most of all glory. But their intentions were not alone; to Thoron this did not just mean a new uprising, a beginning of a new aura, but revenge! His main goal was to vengeance himself and punish his people, every one of them because they neglected him, but especially – his brother – his own flesh and blood, who banished him from their kingdom and took what was rightfully his, his time to reign, his throne. All that was taken from him when his brother was crowned king instead of him! Now he was going to pay. 

* * *

><p>Everybody was laughing in his mind. He heard rumors spreading about this other guy. Did she think that he wouldn't see her out at the lake, what was she doing to him by taking him where they used to go? If she tried to break his heart, it was working cause she knew that should be him holding her hand, making her laugh, it was all too sad. He was trying to make it all okay again, but she wouldn't let him and when she told him she needed more time for his mistakes, it was all a lie. Instead, she used all her time to have him replaced. It hurt so much. "PRINCE AIKKA!". It was only a second before the sharp point of the arrow could hit his eye if he didn't turn around quickly enough!<p>

"Prince Aikka! What are you doing? Focus, you could have been killed!", Canaan yelled at him and nodded towards the remarkable silver sword in his right hand.

"Forgive me, I just…"

"You need to focus! In a battle there is no time for distractions!". It was easy for him to say. Sometimes the prince wished he could switch life with someone just once! It didn't matter who it was, just the matter of fact having a little freedom wasn't much to ask. If he had the life of his fencing master who lived a peaceful life, his wouldn't be as chaotic as the prince's. He needed to know if he should fight for that love or disarm, it was getting harder to shield the pain in his heart. But that was not the only thing that made him restless. The feeling that something bad might happen back home grew bigger. Somehow he felt that he needed to get back as quickly as possible! And he was absolutely right!

**(¤)** Little by little the sun rose up from the horizon and cautiously brushed away the darkness and the dancing moonlight. It was time. He knew precisely that at the break of dawn the people of Nourasia was still in a deep sleep, ignorant of that each and one of their lives were in complete danger. Once he saw the first golden sunbeam shine in his eyes and tasted it's warmth he commanded them to go. One by one, in humongous numbers, they marched compulsively, yet obstinately ready for battle, ready to kill, through the detached forest and down heading for the heart of the palace. They stopped at the top of the hill and waited. Waited for their lord's signal. There he saw it. The gorgeous kingdom where he once lived and the palace where his vengeance waited for him. He raised his bloody grotesque sword and pointed it towards the palace. "ATTACK!", he shouted! And the whole armada scurried down through the villages, burned up the poor houses build of nothing but pathetic straws and brick', breaking through the people's door's and slough every one of the members of the family leaving dead corpses flood around the town. There were shrieks of horror, people screaming for their lives, parents desperately attempting to protect their children and their children frightfully watching their parents die in a callous man's hand! A total chaos burst out in the kingdom!

The archer's blazing fire arrows were no match for the massive armada crushing their kingdom piece by piece. The captain of the royal guards sent the other's unprepared, unwarned, and inexperienced, out to their death hoping that it would hinder the enemies from taking into the center of the palace, but what they were ignorant of was that the nemeses were just a quarter of Thoron's first platoon! Once they were out on the battle field and fighting against the tiny troop of enemies and conceited that it they were the only ones, just like the wind, Thoron threw the second troop against them storming from the east pressuring the useless little army of theirs into a v-formation letting the third troop enter without any further distractions! One after another the numbers decreased. Swords and shields of hard iron coruscated against each other and despite the fact that they were all the same, they still killed each other! It was a real bloodbath and piles of corpses were tossed around everywhere! The ones who were left inside could only watch as their friends and enemies died in each other's hands. While the soldiers destroyed everything they came across through the halls and either killed or captured the ones who tried to stop them, their master silently lurked towards the master bedroom, where a certain someone was about to meet his doom. The king and his queen slept quietly not hearing what was outside their very doors. Then the king heard a terrifying scream outside the window! "What's going on?", he gasped as he woke up from the noise. Suddenly he heard heavy steps coming closer and closer to the door and then someone in a crimson red cape grabbed him by his collar and dragged him into what was left as throne room where an immense amount of wounded people and even Eva and Alan were captured!

Thoron threw him truculently on the floor causing the king to hit his head on the wall! "Unhand me! Let me g-", the queen screamed when one of his cantankerous soldiers hit her with the swords blade! Pusillanimous and anxious, the king tried to crawl over unconscious wife! "NORI!", he shouted. "SILENCE, YOU FOOL!", Thoron yelled and harshly smashed him on the cheek with his bare hand! He looked cautiously at the intimidating man and sensed the evil flowing through him. Thoron's mask hid his hideous face as he glanced coarsely at his brother. Lao could feel a cold shiver down his spines as he picked up his sword covered in innocent people's blood and slowly walked towards him. The king looked at him with frightened eyes and begged him to spare his life! Was he really going to die today? Had destiny brought him such misfortune that now he was about to face his death? Thoron grinned cunningly at him; finally he was getting his rightful revenge for all the misery years Lao had caused him! "NO, PLEASE!". Then he saw it. _"Those eyes… they are exactly like mine. Where have I seen them before?",_ he thought for a second and then it hit him like a lightning! _"No, no, no, nooo! It can't be!". _As horrifying at it was, it was true! The man standing in front of him with a sword so sharp it could slice you to pieces in seconds and was about to send him to hell, was his own brother! Suddenly memories of them as children flashed in his mind! All that they did together back then, appeared in his mind. Them playing happily together in the back of the garden with swords made of wood, sharing delicious food, fighting and laughing as brothers should and even the time when he became sick and Thoron took care of him by nursing him. Building things together, singing with their loving mother and even dancing! Practicing together. His smiles, his laugh and everything they did together were now just small glimpses buried in the past. As soon as their father became ill, the dark days came, when he tried to kill him and then in resemblance with their father, he had to banish his own brother. Oh, how bittersweet it was to watch him leave, his only brother! It pained him in the heart to make him leave, but just he knew it was the only right thing to do. And he could still remember how their mother grieved at the execution and how disappointed and hurt they both were. If only he didn't do it, if only he regretted it. Only then he could come back and make everything alright again. Oh, how much he wished it would happen. All of a sudden Thoron pulled off his mask and revealed his true identity!

"THORON?", the king looked shocked at him!

"Yes, it is me!"

Lao stared at him with big eyes and stood carefully up to look at him more. It was really him! It was true! Tears began filling his eyes. He could feel the guilt building itself up again as he lied his hands on his brother's shoulder. "Thoron…. It's you…", the king whispered and shed a tear. The sound of his brother sobbing made him drop the sword for a little while. "Oh, how I have missed you, my brother! It has been so long…", he said and at last hugged him. "I am so sorry for everything… please… forgive me…". Forgive him? Could he really forgive him for all that he did to him all those years? Could he really do that? A slight anger boiled inside Thoron when he found their father's crown on top of his head. Suddenly he pushed the king away and picked up his sword again! "Forgive you? How dare you tell me that I should forgive you?", he shouted and shove him onto the wall again!

"LAO!", Nori screamed as she slowly woke up again.

"Do you know all the things I have been through because of you? Your apology amounts to nothing! If you think I am here to apologize for the things I did, you are very wrong!"

"No, Thoron, you don't underst-"

"What don't I understand? Tell me, how do you plan on making me understand all the misery you have caused me? You know very well what I am here for! I am not here to beg for your forgiveness neither to come back! I am here for my revenge! FOR EVERYTHING THAT YOU TOOK AWAY FROM ME! MY CROWN, MY THRONE! EVERYTHING! Even… father and mother. You made them NEGELECT ME, LAO! And now you_ will _PAY!", he shouted and finally picked up his sword and was about deal the final blow when all of a sudden a shining blue arrow shot it off his hand!

"UN SEKAI NURAMA TERA UBERAR!"

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAARGH!", Thoron whined in pain as he felt the fire burn through his hand.

"Mother, father! What is going on here?"

"Aikka!", both his mother and Eva shouted as they relieved stood up immediately when they saw him! As the queen ran to him and his shocked fencing master, Thoron had the chance again. He quickly picked up his dangerous sword and stormed towards the king and aimed at his weak heart! "DIEEEEEEEEEEEE!", he shouted and swung the sword! "NOOOOOOOOO-". Suddenly someone fell to the ground! Blood flood out through her chest as the sharp blade went right through her! She could feel the warm taste of her own fresh blood as she cough it up. "EVAAAAAAA!", the prince shouted and ran the fastest he could to her and held her in his arms! "Aikka…", Eva said weakly.

"I'm here… I'm here.", he whispered softly and forced a smile on his face as tears began flowing down his eyes. Eva looked longingly at his deep blue eyes and smiled. Suddenly she cough up so too much blood and shut her lids! The smile on his face disappeared quickly as he realized what happened. "Eva? Eva! Eva! No…", he said and shed more tears as he shook her lifeless.

"NOOOOOOOOOOOO!"

* * *

><p><strong>AN:  
>Remember what I said last time about some sort of surprise? Well, here it is! As you all may know this story is beginning to come to an end, but before that I wanted to throw in an exciting contest for you guys!<strong>

**I'm not gonna tell you what the purpose is before the last chapter, so you just have to read along! Haha, sorry! ****I need a perfect middle name for either a brave little boy or a sweet little girl.**

** You can come up or find names for both of them. To enter, you just have to leave the names in a review below here and don't forget to write why you think they're perfect! The winner will be presented in the beginning of the last chapter in the author's note and mentioned in the description of my coming drawing at .com/! Just remember that this contest will be closed _before_the last chapter, so that means that you still have some time to think. It's voluntary, but if you join, that's great! So think, think, think and good luck ~**

**I hope you guys loved reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it. Sorry, I had to fix it again since everything became too thick, but till next time guys, see you ~**


	19. Chapter 19: Awaken from the deep sleep

**A/N:**

**Can't believe we've come so far! Never thought I'd get so many reviews or write so many chapters. This is really my first time writing and I kind of always had the dream of publishing my own books or make a movie out of something that inspired me. Now that I actually feel that someone is reading it, just makes me super happy!**

**Okay, I'm not going to overwhelm you guys, so go on and read. Remember to review :) thank you ~**

**CHAPTER 19**

* * *

><p>His apology amounted to nothing. They were invisible, hard to see, like dust. He would never forget all those years of misery, all the neglecting the king had brought between him and his brother and how his <em>own<em>family turned their backs on him. They were bitter scars buried deep in his darken heart. As soon as he got a hold of himself again he shove his brother far away, he didn't change a bit. He was still the obstinate and possessive brother he always was. Fast as the blowing wind he scurried to pick up his intimidating sword which was covered in innocent people's blood, and stormed towards the king! Trapped in front of a broken wall with no escape, the king inhaled a long, hard breath and prepared himself to face death. Within minutes it would be over. The light would be blown out from his guilty eyes. He could hear his heavy footsteps coming closer and closer while he raised his sword and swung it! Suddenly he heard a scream! Then he saw it. A weak, wounded body covered in blood. It was not his, but another's. What he saw was terrifying. "EVAAAAA!", he heard someone shout before he quickly put his arms around her right in front of his eyes.

His calming words and gentle smiles was enough to make her enjoy her last moments with glimpses of light. Then she cough up her last drops of blood and shut her lids. The prince's eyes widen as he desperately shook her body. Thoron watched as his victim slowly faded away to darkness as he raised his sword again. This time he was aiming for the girl. The one who ruined his revenge which he had waited for so long. "PRINCE AIKKA!", his mother and fencing master screamed anxiously behind him!

"NOOOOOOOOOOOO-". That was his last word before he collapsed on the ground. Cold, bloody, unconscious, but happy. If the light had extinguished for her, finally they would be together. In peace. In silence. From what he heard was horrifying though. His mother grieved in fear that she might lose him as she followed her son carried away. Quickly as the wind, he shot a blazing, blue fire arrow through his head! Finally it was over. Canaan dropped the long bow on the ground as the royal guards carried his corpse away. The old fencing master could feel the king's sorrow, but it was the only right thing to do. After that everything became black as a ravens feather coat. 

* * *

><p>All Nouraisa was devastated for their loss of their innocent people, the poor children who had lost their families and for their prince who sacrificed himself for the one thing that meant everything to him. Even her best friends cried and sobbed as they hoped that miracles would bring her back. Alan begged for the girl he had always loved, to wake up, wake up from the deep "sleep" she had fallen into. But as far as he knew now, it was over, suddenly. He sat by her side, holding her hand tightly, all night waiting. Although the doctors had done everything they could, he still waited. "Please Eva… don't do this to me. Come back… wake up. You can't do this!", he sobbed while stroking her soft hair.<p>

"Alan, stop it.", Rick whispered and tried to pull him away from her bed. "It's enough…"

"How can you say that?"

"There's nothing more we can do…". Unwilling to leave her no matter what, Rick knew he had to force him anyways. Crying for her to wake up and hoping she would hear him was useless. He battle to free himself from his tight grip as Rick shove him out towards the door. "EVAAA! Please, Rick! Evaaaaa! WAKE UP! Everyone needs you. Your father needs you, your friends need you and… I need you! EVEN AIKKA NEEDS YOU!". It was enough. The suffering had to end. Rick yelled that it would make no difference. No matter how much he tried, she would never hear him! "She's d-", he was about to shout when thy suddenly heard a strange noise coming from behind them. What they saw was astonishing, unbelievable! Her chest was moving back and forth and underneath they were certain that her heart beat. Thrilled and overjoyed by the sounds flowing out of her mouth, they ran quickly over to her bed just to hear her breathing again! Then she let out a painful moan. Rick smiled at Alan, but he nodded towards the door. Throughout the long night they watched her every movement and made sure everything was alright, thought she still was too unconscious and out of rest to realize what was happening around her. Finally at the break of dawn, they fell asleep. Tired and worn out, yet extremely relieved. 

* * *

><p>They were not the only ones. Right across her room lied a young woman with copper brown locks and the most beautiful blue eyes on her bed with the one she loved making her smile and laugh again right beside her. Similar to a mirror, he reflected her bright personality. Even though Thoron's destructions destroyed most parts of the kingdom, he had not reached the little hospital. When he noticed the dryness of her voice coming from her throat, he suggested he could go get her something to drink. "Just wait here, ok?", he said and left her.<p>

Patient and more smiling than ever she waited. Finally Yuna realized how much Stan really loved her. And oh, what an amazing feeling it was to be in love. It was like flying on soft clouds high above the sky. Suddenly there was a quiet knock on her door. She smiled sweetly from ear to ear as she said he could come in. But it remained silent for a little while till she heard the knock again. Once more she said come in, but still no one stepped in. When she asked who it was, the door all of a sudden widen! "YOU?", it burst out of her when she recognized his face. She couldn't believe what she saw. It was the boy she met at the town! The same young man who rescued her from being stomped down by the wild horses and the same one she regretted everything with! He couldn't be here with her, at least not like this! Though she should be more appreciative that he saved her life, she was not pleased to see him at all! "Get out!", she screamed furiously as she threw her white pillows made of down at him. But he was lithe and cunning like a snake and submerged her every shots. "What? Am I not invited? After all I did for you?", he grinned as he approached her bed. Still as weak and sick as she was, there was no escape! "No, get out before Stan comes back!". His awful grin grew bigger as he comprehended her threats as teasing. He told her to relax and assured her he was just there for a visit with his cantankerous snake-like voice. "Here you go, Yuna. Cold as ice, but really g-". He dropped their beverage and stared at them with shocked eyes and his jaw hanging down to the floor. Stan felt the anger boil inside him as he scowled at them, especially the boy. The young man removed his hand from Yuna's chest slowly as his grin transformed into a smirk.

"What are you doing here?"

The boy laid his right hand on her petite shoulders and pulled her close to his light green unbuttoned shirt. Only the sight of that made Stan burn with fury! "Oh, can't you see I'm here to visit my girlfriend?", he grinned with pride when he put pressure on the last word. "Isn't she pretty? Although she doesn't look her best? And oh, how she smells! Even though she haven't taken a bath in days, she smells wonderful!". Suddenly he moved his hand down from her shoulders and towards her bust causing her to squeal!  
><strong><br>**"DON'T TOUCH HER!", Stan shouted and hit him! As expected, the boy smacked him harshly back! Soon their bickering became a fight! They argued and shouted, yelled and hit each other. Despite the fact that Yuna was still too weak to do anything, she stood up and begged them to stop as tears fell from her eyes! All of a sudden a big pack of male nurses ran into the room and tore them apart, throwing the one out and scold at the other one for creating so much chaos! 

* * *

><p>Marielle didn't cry often, but rather laughed when someone was in pain. Still, when she saw his whole body covered in blood and how he gently smiled even with his eyes closed, she too couldn't help but not holding her tears back any longer and cried with her majesty as they followed him carried away. After watching the doctors doing their best, the king took her out from the hospital and out to the peaceful, little garden. There they sat down on a bench made of glistening oak. Lao comforted her as she comforted him and they sat there trying to work their nerves to talk together, almost like father and daughter.<p>

"May I ask you a favor, Marielle?"

"Anything that may please you, your majesty.". The king sighed deeply as it pained him in the heart to tell her that if his son ever woke up, she had to promise to take care of him. "Be a good wife…". The princess nodded and laid all her heart into her words that she would. Unlike a certain someone, she promised to do her best to make him smile every day and live a happy life with her, although she knew he would still refuse to call her his fiancée because of the other girl. "I will…". 

* * *

><p>She shut her lids open wide and gasped for air! "AIKKA!", it burst out of her. It was the first thing on her mind and the only thing she could say. She looked around her and found her best friends still asleep, but then woke up Alan. At first she didn't understand where she was or what she was doing there, but when she looked at her chest, which was gyrated with many layers of bandage, she remembered everything! The screams, the sound of people crying and sobbing, the smell of fresh blood and the taste of it in her sore mouth and the touch of his hand embracing her again. Everything! Alan rubbed his eyes to see if she was clearly awake. "Aikka!", she shouted again and was attempting to get out of bed immediately, but Alan held her quickly back! "Aikka! Aikka! Where's Aikka?". He noticed the concerned and shocked look on her face and how pale her skin was. As soon as she calmed down a little bit he told her he was still alive and that she had to stop worrying. "Don't fret, don't worry."<p>

"Where is he? I want to see him!", she asked and once more tried to get up. First he let out a long sigh, but told her that he was still unconscious. Only hearing that was enough to make her hunger even more to see him! "I… no!". Alan held a tight grip around her hands as he forced her to lie down on the bed. All the bickering woke up Rick and he saw the two battling against each other. He was about to ask them what was going on when Alan held his arms around her and held her back from escaping! "You haven't recovered yet, Eva!".

"He was hurt because he was trying to save me! I want to find him!", Eva shouted for the last time with tears in her eyes as she shove his arms away and jumped out of bed towards the hallway! He followed her as he tried to call her back! She ran and ran with all the energy that was left in her weak bones, but suddenly fell on the hard floor! Alan couldn't watch as she desperately tried to crawl to find him. It hurt his heart to see her suffering because she couldn't find him in her condition. "Alright, I'll help you. Don't panic, okay?", he said and helped her up. 

* * *

><p>After his anger calmed down, he was allowed to come back and see her again. Once the eloquent and kind nurse was finished she left the two alone for some peace. But there was no peace, this time he had nothing to hide. He walked furiously over to the edge of her bed and grabbed her arm and squished it! She let out a groan and said it hurt! "Why didn't you say anything? Why didn't you tell him that you had someone else? I was right there, Yuna! In front of your eyes, for crying it out loud! You could have said something or at least pushed him away! WHY?", he yelled and let go of her arm now full of blood. She let out a sob while the tears shed down underneath her shiny blue eyes. It was so humiliating, although she knew he was right. She could have done something, but she didn't.<p>

"WHY?"

"It's so embarrassing! If I could, I would tell the whole world that I love you and you love me, but I can't… because I am afraid of what people will think of us. Just look at how we are, how we think, we are not the same, Stan!". Hearing her saying that annoyed him even more as if his love for her was for no good. Just given in vain. But he took courage and looked into her deep blue eyes again and told her something she thought a man, especially Stan, would ever say to her!

"But I don't care! I don't care what people say! I'm only listening to my heart and it loves _you_!", he shouted and pulled her close to him. Yuna felt her heart pound as his raced faster. She benefited every movement of his on her lips and how his lower lips brushed hers softly. From that moment on, she knew she had found him. The right person who cared for her no matter what! 

* * *

><p>He lied there on the small bed with a thick duvet covering his scars. Unconscious, wounded, with a mask providing enough oxygen for his heart to beat, and with layers of white bandage around his bare chest just like her, but in a worse condition. In resemblance with his mother who grieved as if she had lost him already, tears began filling her eyes as she realize what precious sacrifice he did to spare her life. "Aikka!", she shouted as she scurried down to his bed. Both the king and the royal council watched her every movement with a hawk eye, but especially Lao.<p>

She couldn't hold back her tears any longer and let them race down her cold cheeks as she looked at him with guilty eyes. Not being able to hear him breath normally or see him smile again, broke her completely into thousand pieces. "Are you an idiot?", she sobbed while staring deeply at his face. "Why did you have to save me? Didn't you know that every time you save me, you're the one with misfortune? Like when you saved me from the guy at the tea party, rescued me at the ally, and now even this… wake up, you hear me? Be like who you used to be, before saving me… wake up!". It stabbed him in the heart to watch her cry her heart out over him. He knew precisely how it felt. To be left alone and suffer the feeling of not being able to see the one you that mean the world to you smile at you again. There was nothing they could do now, but let him rest and hoping for the best. The sound of her sobbing made it even worse. Alan knew he shouldn't have brought her there, but who was he to hold her back from seeing him? "Wake up! Please… wake up.", she begged him and constantly shook his arm. "WAKE UP!"

"ENOGUH!", the king yelled and scowled at her. "You, pathetic human… I cannot understand why… since the day he first met you, you have caused not only our family, but him great misfortunes! It is enough! Get out!". Now the king was too overwhelmed with anger and wanted her as far away from his son as possible. Again and again he threatened her to leave, but she refused to move from his side. "GET OUT!". He called her name and pulled her up, almost dragging her out on the floor. Unwilling to leave him like that, without him giving her a single glance because of his situation and the fear that she might never see him again, she fought back and tried to get loose, but he had to force her out! It was either that or die from a broken heart. The second she stepped out the door, the king all of a sudden collapsed!

Once they were in the empty hallways again, he let her go. She wanted to run, she needed to go back, back to where he was, and just longing to see him again, but she couldn't. Instead she stood still, frozen as a statue and as pale as a ghost, in front of Alan with her worn out and tired eyes. She was sick of crying, tired of trying, of course she was smiling, but inside she was dying. Alan knew that and because he just wanted her to be safe and sound, not to mention – happy – he took her in his warming hands in a big embrace and comforted her. "IT'S ALL MY FAULT!", she sobbed loudly in his chest. "Calm down, Eva, calm down! It's not your fault. His family is just worried about him. Don't blame yourself, you know that?". She looked up at him with heartbreaking eyes. "Can't you see? It's all my fault! What if he never wakes up again… what do I do?", she said while swallowing the massive lump in her throat. He looked at her with sincere eyes and assured her that he would wake up, that he would definitely wake up! Alan prayed that he was right, if not, who knew what insane things she would do after his death? 

* * *

><p>Days, hours, minutes and seconds passed. All those who were left and survived the massacre that affected the entire kingdom and the small villages around it, building up their city again and there from showed their real strength by helping each other as the peaceful and harmonic people they were. During the healing process of the frightening scars that had been left in their heart and mind, both physically and mentally, some of they could still not let go of the past and what had happened, though most of them fought even the slightest though to remember it. Koji was one of them. In his nightmares he could still hear the innocent people and their vulnerable children scream for their lives as they with all that they could attempt to escape, but with no success. In addition to that he imagined the very last moments of the old nourasian's life and how horrifying it would be to end it all under a minute!<p>

When the moon danced elegantly its way to the shimmering sky of the night again, she stood from her bed as soon as the sound of her friends' loud snores pleased her ears and lurked down the halls quiet as a mouse in hope that no one would see her. Of course she believed him, but that was only half of her. Her heart told her she had to go back, it was longing for his and she knew that if he died, so would she. This time she was fortunate. There was no one else in the darkness but those two. First she marveled the beautiful shining light the fire brought as it swirled around the top of the glowing candle, but then she turned her focus to him. Though she was relieved to still see and hear him breathing, it was not enough to lift the burden off her crushed heart. If he only knew how much she wished to just hear one word come out of his mouth again. She held tightly around his left hand, which melted perfectly together with hers, and stroke his soft golden, copper locks back and forth. The touch of his skin tickled her, yet it made her feel very lonely. "Can you come back?", she let out a sheer smile. Eva wished that the prince that earnestly meant everything to her could come back. It didn't matter if the "new" him was the one to come back, as long as she could hear his gentle voice again, everything would be fine. She literally sat next to him and begged him to wake up, even though she knew he couldn't hear her. Suddenly she began apologizing. "I'm so sorry, Aikka… I wished this never happened. If I didn't change and hurt you, you would have never done this for me. I'm sorry…". There tears were again, but now she could cry not only in buckets, but a whole river! Now she admitted everything. "I miss you. I miss everything we did together. I miss your tan skin, your sweet smiles, they were so good to me, so right. And how you held me in your arms… that night too, the first time you ever saw me cry. So please, just come back.".

Maybe it was wishful thinking, probably mindless dreaming, but if he woke up again, she swore she would do it right. If she could, she would go back in time and change it, but she couldn't. So if he never woke up, she understood. But there she was sitting beside him, swallowing her pride, apologizing for that night and she'd go back all the time. She haven't been sleeping for days, but played back herself leaving. And when he tried to talk to her, she didn't even dare look him in the eyes. She remembered summer, all the beautiful times, how he watched her laughing and smiling and made her the happiest girl in the world. Then the cold came and the dark days, when fear crept into her mind, he gave her all he could, but all she gave him was good-bye. She bit her cracked lips because she couldn't hold it back anymore. Eva literally cried out her soul. It hurt too much. The fact that she might never see him again killed her slowly. The suffering guilt and painful regret build itself up and stabbed her heart like a thousand knives. Right now she wished she never knew what love was, so the pain could just fade away. But she couldn't let him go.

"AIKKAAAAA!", she sobbed and squeezed his hand as she buried herself onto his tan chest covered with tight bandage. After that the lights went off for her too.

* * *

><p>It was late at night. While everyone was on their way to dreamland, a certain young lady with a light pink apron on and her gorgeous brown hair tied up in a messy updo, was in the luxurious kitchen preparing something special for the man of her dreams, the one whom soon should become her husband and the new king. Although it didn't turn out the way she imagined it, she insisted and did her best because she knew she put all her heart and soul in it. Only the lovely smell of freshly baked buns with sweet little nibbles of delicious fruit that perfectly melted on your tongue watered her mouth! Hopefully her exertions of trying to become a good wife for him would be rewarded with his wonderful smiles. She giggled at the thought of the prince as she ploded cheerfully her way to the hospital where her love lied and waited. <p>

* * *

><p>Hour by hour passed and all of a sudden it was morning again! The glorious sun rose up from the beautiful horizon and woke up the sleeping people of Nourasia. Once she was finished rubbing away what left of as sleep from her tired, hanging eye bags, she realized that it was too quiet in the room. The touch of his silky, soft hands that kept her hand warm during the night was gone! She looked in every nook and cranny, but he was gone! Nor was he underneath or on the messy bed, hiding in the bathroom or in the room at all! Her eyes widen as she stared horrified at the open window and felt how the cold wind stroke her pale cheeks. Desperately like a timid mother who lost her child, she ran everywhere around the hospital, but there were no signs of him! Suddenly she stopped in the middle of the hallways when she came across the evil witch herself, ready to drag her name through the dirt again. The princess glanced at her with her killing eyes of the devil. "Where have you been?", she asked in a poisonous tone. Eva swallowed her nervousness and pretended she didn't hear her and continued walking as if she didn't even exist, but Marielle didn't let her off that easily. She immediately dropped her knitted basket with the steaming hot buns on the ground and brutally began pulling her hair! Poorly, in resemblance with a defenseless and weak pray, she fell on the ground and began shrieking of pain and cried horribly while the princess, who was filled with blazing hatred and somewhat intense jealousy, literally ripped her hair off, cynically enjoying her every scream!"Tell me!", she demanded furiously and strangled her little by little! Still, as obstinate and rebellious as she was, she wouldn't admit it, even if it cost her life!<p>

"TELL MEEEEEE!". She continued shaking her head and yelled back that she didn't know. Marielle punched her in the face and constantly slapped her till her cheeks were as red a tomato! "YOU LITTLE LIAR! I'LL KI-"

"Eva? Marielle? What is the meaning of this?", a voice suddenly asked behind their very backs. It was a familiar voice, one both of them had heard before! To their surprise it was him. Emerald green eyes and ash brown hair. He quickly tore them apart and helped the wounded and now extremely bloody girl up in his safe and protecting arms walking slowly away from the monstrous princess! She sobbed, not because she was upset from what Marielle insanely did to her, but because her wounds burned as if she had been stung by bees a thousand times! "Thank you, Keiran… I-", she was about to say when she her eyes grew big when she looked up.

Right there in front of his eyes, was him. "AIKKA!". She scurried from his best friends arms with tears drizzling from her red eyes and clanged tightly to his warm body as she let out the pain! Suddenly it became very silent in the empty halls. Not a single word came out from neither Keiran's nor the princess' mouth. The quietness slowly killed her as she waited nervously for his loving and tender arms, but he didn't do it. Usually he would embrace her deeply into his chest and caress her cheeks until she'd stop crying heavily, but now there was nothing but an awkward silence. Now that she really missed and needed his hugs, he didn't even raise one arm. What was happening? Did she do something wrong. She met his blank glance as she looked anxiously up at him. He had eyes immense as bowling balls with pupils tiny because of shock. Suddenly, completely unexpected, he shove her away from him! She looked at her ribs. They were broken, wounded and bloodier than ever. But she didn't care. Once she was back on her feet again, she tried to approach him, but the prince slowly walked away as if she was some kind of horrifying monster.

Suddenly it burst out of him! Something that they thought he would never say. His eyes were not the same as before, neither was his gentle smile. "Who are you?" 

* * *

><p><strong>AN:****Haha, alright people, don't kill me! I noticed that many of you were very sad that Eva "died", but as you read, she didn't die completely, but was in some kind of "deep sleep" and woke up afterwards. Let's just say she was very unconscious for a while. But even though she's alive, there are more problems to come. What will happen next? Find it out in the next chapter!**

**Oh, and thanks for your entries for the competition! They're amazingly awesome! :D Good job, guys! Remember if you haven't participated yet, there's still some time! Other than that, good luck ~**


	20. Chapter 20: Chaos after the hospital

**A/N:**  
><strong>Hi, guys! What's up? Did you like the last chapter? Well, I hope so. Yes, recently the chapters have contained many sad things, but hey, don't worry! Like a wise person or just an ordinary teenager said: <em>"Everyone wants happiness, no one wants pain, but you can't have a rainbow, without a little rain."<em>. Don't you agree? So there's still a chance that something good will happen! Thank you so much for all your encouragements for publishing my own books, it means a lot to me!**

**Anyways, just do your part for my story and I'll do mine ;) thank you ~**

**CHAPTER 20  
><strong>

* * *

><p>"I miss you. I miss everything we did together. I miss your tan skin, your sweet smiles, they were so good to me, so right. And how you held me in yours arms… even that day, the first time you ever saw me cry.". There she was crying her heart out and begging him to wake up even though she knew it was impossible for him to hear her. Every single piece of her body hurt. Her eyes were extremely sore because of her sobbing, she was out of breath and the smell of herself soaking in her own stained blood killed her nose. But she didn't care, the only thing that mattered to her was for him to smile at her again. She let out a painful scream of his name as she squeezed his hand tightly before the lights shut off from her too.<p>

Although the prince was still much wounded, he could move his tiny, free fingers. Once his heavenly blue eyes shut open and the bright shafts of sunlight hit his face, he woke up immediately. Quickly enough to orientate himself in his new environment, but quiet enough not waking up the sleeping beauty underneath his bare chest. A sheer warmth rushed through him when he realized his hand had melted inside hers. He pulled her hand off his and disappeared through the door at the break of dawn.

* * *

><p>Memories of the dreadful incident flashed back in his mind. He could still remember it. The smell, the shrieks, the frightened expressions from his innocent people's face, everything. It was shocking, yet completely unexpected. Now that he was gone, he felt nothing like himself again, as if an important part of him had died. Only the thought of how his own family and himself neglected him, was speechless. Right now he should feel pity for himself for believing in such nonsense because he knew that it was never his fault, but his brother's. Instead his intimidating voice kept haunting him in his dreams causing the guilt to overcome his heart. Slowly and little by little, the king lost his focus. His wife, the queen worried sick for him and constantly asked him if he was alright, though he replied he was fine every time, he really wasn't. What happened between him and Thoron was not the only thing that made him restless. Despite the fact that she had saved his precious life, he still refused to be more appreciative. Just the sight of her pouring her soul out because of his only son, hit him directly in the heart. No matter how much his heart desperately told him that it was incredibly wrong, Lao had his final decision. She had to be removed. Sent far away, far away from him and his family, but especially his son.<p>

* * *

><p>Just like the prince he greeted everyone good morning and made the ill one's forget their sickness by making them smile as he roamed around the hospital in aurora. Besides that, his main intentions were to visit his best friend, his childhood friend whom he had known for several decades! Along with him he brought an important letter in his hands that he would present for the king afterwards later in the afternoon as soon as he finished his short, yet to cheer up visit. To his surprise he found him right away! Confused of where he was and oblivious of the fact of who he was, he glanced blankly out one window marveling the chippering birds on the majestic nourasian tree just outside the hospital. "My oh my, what do we have here?", Keiran smiled brightly and walked over to him. At first the prince looked at him with frightened eyes, but decreased slowly when it came back to him who he was. He opened his arms and embraced his best friend in hope that he understood what it meant. After placing his arms around the prince, both laughed like old times. "You have recovered fast I can see, my friend. According to your condition I thought you would never recognize me again."<p>

"How could I forget you? It's good to see you again, Keiran.". He beamed with happiness when he heard those wonderful words come out of his mouth and said the same thing in return. After they finished speaking with each other again about some memories of them together, they took a tiny stroll around the hospital knowing that it was good exercise for both of them. Suddenly a little bun rolled down the end of the halls towards them and stopped its race on by the top of Keiran's turquoise-brown pointy shoes! He picked it up and smelled it. Still steaming hot and quite fresh, but where did it come from? They followed it source all the way up and through to the center of the hallways where what they say made their eyes shock and their jaws drop to the floor!

* * *

><p>He yawned like a dying walrus while stretching his bones like a giraffe and then to wake up a snoring blue whale on the couch just beside him. "Rick, Rick, Rick! Wake up!", he yelled in his ear and shook him like there was no tomorrow!<p>

"Alan…? What the he-"

"SHE'S GONE!"

"Who's gone?", he asked and took his black sunglasses off to rub his eyes, which was filled with golden dust. Alan looked at him with a raised eyebrow. Who was really the most intelligent between them? If there were only them two in the room, who could be the missing link? "Who's gone? Oh, I'll tell you who's gone… YOUR MOTHER! NO! EVA'S GONE! Geez, and I thought you were the smart one here?", Alan said in an annoyed tone before leaving the dumb and confused whale with sunglasses. Rick watched as the boy stomped irritated out of the tiny room and out to the halls. "Wow, talk about grumpy in the morning… did I say something wrong?", he shrugged and stood up.

* * *

><p>"EVA! MARIELLE! WHAT IS THE MEANING OF THIS?", he shouted with a furious voice before he quickly ran over and tore them apart and to then pull the poor girl out of her vicious hands into his protecting arms. It was horrible, absolutely heartbreaking seeing them like that, it was like watching a cruel chicken smothering her own precious, little egg! Because she was still extremely sick and didn't recovered fully yet, her wounds became worse and bloodier than ever when the princess literally attempted to rip her head off! It pierced him in the heart to hear her painful sobbing and how she suffered her meager injuries! Keiran looked at the princess with frightened, yet angry eyes. "Marielle! What have you done? Look at her! You should be ashamed of yourself, your highness!", he scold her in a despicable tone. Now that the guilt had approached her cold and bitter heart, it actually intersected her insides piece by piece. With regretful tears in her poisonous deep purple eyes and now pity in her heart, she just wanted to scream, but instead her haughty pride wouldn't let go her and therefore she stuck to her revenge. Eva coughed up so much of her own blood she could barely stand up by herself with her knees shaking like jelly and eyes as sore as a badly wounded bruise, but still she insisted that she could handle it. Keiran looked at her with doubtful eyes, but decided to give her a try.<p>

She was about to thank him before she left to go back to her room and "rest", when she saw him. Right in front of her eyes were his heavenly blue eyes. Relieved of what she saw and with tears drizzling down her cold cheeks, she ran over to him to then clinging tightly to his body finally having the chance to show him how much she had longed to see him. "Aikka!", she sobbed and buried herself on his warm chest just waiting for his loving and tender arms to embrace her deeply. The more she cried and waited patiently, the more awkward the silence grew between all of them. Then she looked up and found his blank glance just staring peculiarly at her as if she was some kind of insane beast that could kill him any minute. His eyes were not the same, not the same ones she earnestly longed to see. Suddenly he shoved her away, but then slowly and cautiously walked over to her as she landed harshly on the hard and dirty floor! Once she looked up at him with even more frightened tears in her eyes, it looked like he was about to hurt her even more with his tightened fist and brutal blue eyes. "Aikka? What are you…?", Keiran looked at him with concerned eyes. All of a sudden it burst out of him. He stopped just a few inches away from Eva and looked at her once more.

"Who are you?".

First her relieved smile became as blank as crystal clear water, but now it just broke into a completely crushed expression. Was he joking? Did he mean what he just asked her? It couldn't be. He couldn't have. It was far beyond impossible. Unfortunately it was true. When she got a hold of herself again, she stood straight up and walked up close to him, but for each step closer she took, the further away he walked as if he was scared of her. "Aikka?", she looked at him with anxious eyes and tried to touch his cheeks as she approached his boiling face dripping with nervous sweat.

"Stop! Stay where you are. Do not come any further..."

"What do you mean? Don't you-", she was about to ask and stroke his sheer pink cheeks when he slapped her hands away in a furious tone! His voice was so hard and burning like a fire. Nobody expected that. How could someone who had a gentle voice and sweet smiles suddenly became so harsh all of a sudden? "STAY AWAY FROM ME! I DON'T KNOW YOU! LEAVE ME ALONE!", he shouted on top of his blazing lungs and shove her away once more, this time causing the tears she had saved to let out in his warming arms burst out of her like a massive explosion! For instance, what made the whole situation the worst possible thing was that he drove her away by threating her more and more and then kill her entire heart by putting his arms around the hideous princess, who had injured her wounds coldly, and caressed her cheeks to comfort her. Suddenly she heard heavy footsteps coming closer and closer. She could hear his heavy breathing as he told her he had been looking for her everywhere in an exhausted sigh from all the running. "Hey, what's wr-". Then he realized what had just happened after seeing her crying her broken heart out like never before.

"ARGH! AIKKA! COME BACK HERE, YOU COWARD!", he yelled and ran after the prince ready to beat the crap out of him! The patients who had just come out to enjoy the gorgeous sunshine outside the very windows of the halls turned around and shit bricks when they saw the boy storming with a boiling head towards the prince!

"ALAN! NO!", Eva and Keiran shouted after him as they desperately ran after him trying to catch him! But it was too late. The young human boy stroke at him with a blow on the left side of his face under a minute! His whole body was working overtime! The heart beat faster than ever, his muscles were pumping and oxygen was generated in the speed of lightning in his tiny lungs providing enough blood to make his punch even harder than ever almost knocking out the sense out of the prince's sleek body! Eva was literally crying in pain both because of her awfully injured body and because it broke her heart even more watching the two guys that meant absolutely everything to her almost fighting to death! "ALAN! Stop! Stop! Stop!", she begged as she tried to pull him away from Aikka who lied on the ground confused and battling for his life by hitting him back. "STOP IT!". While they still had a chance, Keiran tore them apart and tossed each of them to their sides. Now he turned his attention to Eva who shrieked of pain with tears soaking down her pale cheeks. "Why? Why, Eva, why? WHY DID YOU PULL ME BACK? Can't you see that I'm trying to make it up to you?"

She looked at him with hurt eyes. The angry boy in front of her was not the same boy she truly knew. It seemed that the amiable, attentive and loving Alan with the eloquent personality she once knew was gone and replaced with a cantankerous, obstinate and truculent guy that was simply despicable in her eyes. "Make it up to me?", she asked as she shed more tears. "Make it up to me? Is this the way you wanted me to feel better? By beating him up? You can't do that!"

"I can't? Why?"

"Because it's wrong!"

"No, you're wrong, Eva! Don't you understand that he has hurt you enough? THAT HE PRACTICLY DOESN'T CARE WHO YOU ARE OR WHAT FEELINGS YOU HAVE ANYMORE? Well, it's time to face the truth! HE DOESN'T CARE, EVA! WAKE UP!", he yelled furiously as he shook her shoulders. Though it she didn't want to believe it, sadly enough it was true. He had forgotten her. Not a single memory of them together was left in his mind. She collapsed on the floor just of the thought of it. All her friends, including the prince's best friend, shouted and screamed as they desperately tried to wake her unconscious body, but it was no use. She was worn out, practically dead inside too as her heart slowed down by the devastation overpowering her very last strength. 

* * *

><p>Since that day everything went never back to the way they used to be. Alan drowned his sorrows and hardships through thousands shots of alcohol always returning back to his room drunk as a sailorman. Meanwhile, the girl he loved the most slipped into a deep depression and lost herself gradually in the thoughts of his amnestic rival. After all he had done for he, including being the shoulder she could cry on, how could she still not be able to forget him even when during the time when he just ignored her completely? <em>"What does she even see in him?",<em>he asked frustrated himself hundreds of times. The prince had everything! Money, royalty and power, but the only thing Aikka didn't have and what Alan always wanted was Eva. Why? Why couldn't she see that he was the only one right for her? What that too much to ask? His new, but drastic personality was becoming too dangerous and enough to cause Eva's friends and people around him being concerned for him. Whenever they tried to put away the alcohol and talk to him decently, he couldn't stop drinking more and more. Things were completely out of hand!

While some suffered heartbreaking periods, a stunning and fresh prince who had recovered remarkably fast from the hospital bed began quickly accomplishing his royal duties again. Because of his extremely new focus in life, his memories of Eva began decreasing little by little. Now that his main goals were to please his father and provide for the kingdom a great future ahead of them, his amnesia grew even bigger than before slowly causing him to forget her completely! Keiran watched disgustingly as the "new" prince spent more and more time with the vicious princess thinking that it was only right thing because she was his fiancée and the only one he ever loved. The prince he saw hugging, dancing, laughing and now almost kissing the hideous princess, was not the Aikka and childhood friend he knew. How could he forget her so easily? Wasn't Eva the girl who used to mean everything to him? Days later everything became even worse. Just as he feared the day had finally come. 

* * *

><p>Lao smiled and put his arms around the petite hips of his wife swirling her around on the gorgeous marbled floor with hints of sparkling beige stones. Nori blushed and caressed his cheeks after he put her down again to let his wrinkly forehead rest on hers. "What have you eaten that have made you so happy?". All of a sudden his smile turned into a broad grin. At last, after years of planning, he had finally successes! Oh, what a happy day it was for the old king. Finally it would happen!<p>

"WHAT?"

"What do you mean what? Is it not great news that he has finally accepted it?". The queen, who was supposed to be overjoyed by hearing the news, was not smiling brightly. Instead she was furious with anger!

"You cannot do that! It is wrong!"

"Wrong?"

"Yes! How could you do that to your own son? You are his father! Can't you see that he is not well?"

"Not well? The boy is practically standing on his very feet now, how can you say that he is still ill?"

"YOU'RE USING HIM, LAO!"

Nori was right. Deep inside the king he knew it was wrong too. His conscience had tormented him all the time warning him of what consequences his actions could cause, but as stubborn and stuck up as he was, he refused to listen to himself! Of course he knew that taking advantage of his son's amnesia was wrong! But what other way could he possibly pay his immense debt to the northern kingdom? The king looked at his wife with breaking eyes. "You will never understand…", he said while shaking his head before he excused himself and left. 

* * *

><p>Right after his astonishing practice with the old nourasian he took the chance while he still sat on the wooden bench just outside the blooming garden resting. "Keiran?", he said in a surprised tone.<p>

"Did I frighten you?"

"No, of course not. Oh, here…". He moved a little to the right to make some space for his best friend to sit beside him. At first everything became silent because he didn't want to bomb him with confusing, yet simple questions. In addition to that, he had to wait for the right time, which was when the prince had fully recovered, but Keiran had no choice. It was now or never. He opened his hand in front of Aikka's sky blue eyes and slowly opened it revealing a smooth white piece of paper with beautiful handwriting on it. "What is that?"

"Read it…", he said and handed it carefully over to him. He noticed the puzzled look on his eyes as he read it word by word. Suddenly the prince smiled. That was not the reaction Keiran had hoped for. He expected him to be more shocked by the sudden news! "Why are you smiling?"

"Why shouldn't I? Do you not think it is splendid?". Instead of Aikka, Keiran's eyes exploded with shock like a volcano! "SPLENDID?"

"Yes, why? Do you have something against it?"

"Of course not... but do you not think it's too much. You are far too young for this!"

"Too young?", Aikka asked and began to get a little annoyed. "Who are you to tell me that I am too young?". Keiran took a deep breath before explaining him everything. He kept asking and asking him about his life and his "love" for the princess, if it was really candid. If he _really_loved her. Aikka shot him with his mad and killing eyes as if he had just insulted him coarsely.

"What does she even mean to you?"

"Everything! I love her!"

"Love her? What do you love _about_her? She is psychically repulsive, intellectually retarded, vulgar, insensitive, selfish and stupid. No taste, a lousy sense of humor and… everything terrible you can imagine!". Soon Keiran began numbering all her rotten characteristics aiming her to be a horrible person! "Marielle is nothing but a-"

"ENOUGH! SEIZE WITH THE INSULTS, KEIRAN!", Aikka yelled and punched him on the face! 

* * *

><p>The tall man with the black sunglasses shove the heavy curtains aside letting the sun shine right through his saggy eyes. He quickly woke up to yell at him, but went back to his cave when he realized who stood at the edge of his bed. "Get up, kid. Sleeping here all day is not going to help you. Besides, you shouldn't have drunk that much, now you smell like hardcore shit.", he commanded and pulled the stinky duvet off his bare body. Rick's sunglasses cracked up at the sight of his trunk. Even for a guy like him it was disgusting! "WAKE UP! And… COVER THAT UP! RIGHT NOW!".<p>

Minutes later Alan had still not stood up from the death. Just as he thought. The kid just lied on his now fat stomach and snored. He stared at him with a humongous grin. "AAAAAAAH! ARE YOU CRAZY?", Alan screamed at the cold shock!

"Get up, now. Unless you want a second round?"

"SHUT UP AND LEAVE ME ALONE- AAH! ALRIGHT, ALRIGHT! CHILL DOWN! I'M ON IT, I'M ON IT!"

"Look at the bright side, at least you don't smell anymore and you don't need to take a shower. See you at the breakfast table.", Rick laughed as he walked out the room with the giant metal bucket in his right hand.

* * *

><p>The queen walked around the palace to calm her nerves. Everything was nothing but a chaos. How could he not enquire and ask about her opinions too? <em>"I am his mother for crying it out loud!",<em>Nori thought and tighten her fist. In her eyes and heart it was just really unfair. She knew that Lao understood Aikka's feelings for Eva, but instead of letting them be together he forced him to marry someone else! It didn't make sense at all! She was about to explode when she heard loud screaming and shouting coming from the garden. Suddenly she saw them. She quickly ran over to them and tore them apart and then asking them why they fought like they were going to kill each other!

"HE KEPT INSULTING MARIELLE!", Aikka shouted and wiped away the blood around his now beaten up lips. The queen gave Keiran the deadly eyes, but at the same time relieved that it wasn't something too serious because seriously, she didn't care about the princess at all. But as the prince's mother she also had the right to defend him.

"Why? Isn't all that I said true?", Keiran smirked causing Aikka to break out again too hit him back, but stopped when his mother grabbed his arm begging him not. "Can you not see that what you are doing is wrong, Aikka? Have you already forgotten about her that you replaced her with an evil witch instead?"

"Her?"

"Yes, Eva! The one that you always spoke about when you came back home. The girl that saved your life during the race and kept you safe from becoming the avatar and so letting our kingdom collapse without you! She was the one you always had special feelings for! Can you not remember anything about her? Not even the time when you rescued her from me or at the festival down at the town?". Everything that came out from Keiran's mouth were beginning to touch his heart and now slowly and desperately trying to remember all those lost memories. But his mind was still shattered and blurry. Nothing came back to him. "Why do you keep avoiding her? Can you not see that you are hurting her? She meant everything to you, Aikka! If only you remembered it-"

"ENOUGH, KEIRAN!", Nori said. It was really enough. Already as confused as he wasn't capable of indulging the information all at the same time. He couldn't and he wouldn't. Aikka wanted to believe that it was wrong, all lies. In his mind everything in the past he did it with Marielle. She was the one he always used to do everything with. He couldn't accept and acknowledge the fact that it wasn't true because suddenly something flashed back at his mind. The prince refused everything! The horrified expression on his face worried his mother. "Aikka, are you alright? Aikka? Aikka?", she asked and tried to shake him alive again. Suddenly he pushed her aside and ran away! "AIKKA! WHERE ARE YOU GOING?", both Keiran and the queen shouted after him!

He ran and ran as far away as possibly. After stopping the halls to catch his breath back, he began shaking his head insanely! It couldn't be true! He was beginning to became paranoid and thinking that his whole life after the hospital was a lie! _"NO! I CANNOT BE! I LOVE MARIELLE AND NOT THAT OTHER GIRL!",_ he forced himself to think. Eva? Who was she to him and what did she really mean to him? Could it be that all that Keiran told him was true after all? _"She can't be…"_.

"YOU?", a voice shouted. Just a few meters away a young man in green shirt and denim pants stood and stared intently at him. He knew what was about to come. Aikka stood up immediately and prepared himself for the worst.

* * *

><p><strong>AN:**

**I bet a lot of you have waited long for this chapter. Sorry! I've been extremely busy with all the upcoming tests and such that I couldn't really concentrate on the story that much, but here it is! I've also been on a lookout for a new romantic drama and yes, I've found one! Teehee, I love it! IF THE WHOLE STORY IS WITH A BOLD AND FAT WRITING AND COMPLETLEY BLACK, THEN I DON'T KNOW WHAT HAPPENED! IF YOU KNOW HOW TO GET RID OF IT, LET ME KNOW!**

**Hope you enjoyed reading it! Let me know what you though of this chapter below in a review! Stay tuned for the next chapter, guys! This story is beginning to come to an end now, so watch out!**

**JUST A LITTLE REMINDER! It's still a chance to participate in the competition! Thanks for all the entries till now, I think they're all totally awesome! So do your best and good luck! Alright, see you all next time. Bye guys ~**


	21. Chapter 21: Flashes of memories

**A/N:**  
><strong>Shocking right guys? HAHAHAHA XDD Well, hope you didn't explode at the end! Excited to know what happens next? Go on and read :D Can't believe that this is the next last chapter! So sad that it has to come to an end, but I'm aslo glad that I made it so far. Never thought it would happen, but of course I also have to give you guys some credit since you've been really awesome to me :') thanks guys!<strong>

**CHAPTER 21**

* * *

><p>It couldn't be true! How could this happen? He didn't want to believe it. It had to be all lies! The princess was the only one right for him and he knew he loved her because she was really the only one he shared those precious memories with back during the race and even now, not that earth girl. But if it wasn't her how come everyone, epically Keiran, remember everything they did together? Could it be that his whole life after the hospital were all lies and the fact that everything about her were true after all? If so, why couldn't he remember it? "I must be paranoid… no, it can't. Marielle is the one I used to do everything with, right?", the prince asked as he shook his head insanely trying to clear his mind. Suddenly he heard a voice calling his name! There he was standing in a green t-shirt with his ripped off and worn out denim pants ready to kill him. Aikka stood up immediately and prepared himself for the worst.<p>

"So we meet again…"

"You bet, you jerk!". He knew what was about to happen, but instead of making a big scene out of it the prince decided to flee before a huge war began too. But Alan didn't let him off the hook that easily. He came to finish what he had just begun by pushing him back again when the prince tried to walk away and ignore him. Aikka felt a slight anger boil inside him, this time he was fully loaded with all his might. Before the chaos began again he warned him, but once again as stubborn and stupid, not to mention drunk as Alan was, he laughed as if it was a hilarious joke and shove him even further away. "C'mon, prince! You and I have some unfinished business to do."

"Oh really? Breaking someone's heart wasn't enough and now you must fight me too?", Aikka smirked because he knew he could take him down with just one blow. With that Alan burst out with fury!

"Break someone's heart, huh? Pfft, you're the one who should know everything about it!"

"What do you mean?", the prince asked now looking puzzled of what was coming out of the earthlings mouth.

"STAY AWAY FROM EVA OR I PROMISE YOU YOU'LL REGRET IT!". From that point off the prince felt offended somehow. First of all because he was confused of all the words coming out of the earthlings mouth and also because now some memories began flashing back by the mention of her name. Both tightened their fists ready to beat the crap out of each other. "Says who? Her guardian?"

"Says her best friend!", Alan shouted and attempted to punch him as hard as possible in the middle of his tiny little face, but unfortunately as quick as a ninja the prince backed off! "I suggest you leave while you still can!", the prince yelled. The battle was on.

* * *

><p>She opened her eyes slowly by the all the loud noises around her. People were shouting at each other, some scolding one another and then everybody laughed! What the heck was really going on around her? It sounded like she was in a mad house full of crazy people. There were nurses and doctors everywhere taking blood tests, rubbing her wounds gently with some kind of dripping orange lotion made of fresh nourasian herbs and such to help her, and now they were trying to undress her body to check on her injuries. A cold shiver stroke down her spines like a lightning when the doctor with the silver beard was about to take off her hospital gown! Her eyes popped out of her scull right away when she felt the metal spatula dancing on her skin all the way down to a certain intimate place!<p>

"MISS EVA WAIT!", everyone screamed after her.

Even though she hadn't recovered fully yet, her body was working overtime telling her to run from it all. Run away from all her problems and remembering all the suffering back at the hospital. So many horrible memories she wanted to forget. She ran and ran. Her heart beat, her muscles pumping, oxygen being generated in a predigest rate, but still it wasn't enough. Eva collapsed in the middle of the hallways crying out her pain seeking someone to help her up. Someone, like for instance her friends, but everyone had abounded her and left her to be alone. Why couldn't they see much pain she was in? Why did they leave her in a needed time like this? And far more importantly, why wasn't he there? _"Where is he?"_, she thought and managed to stand up and walk again with her final amount of strength back to where she once lived. Back to the palace to find him.

* * *

><p>"Ladies, please come closer. I have an important announcement to share with you."<p>

"C'mon girls, the old hag is calling us back!". Soon all the maids were gathered in the ballroom along with the chefs – who made magnificent art just from small pieces of food – and the handsome guards. The head maid stared evenly, yet evilly at everyone with her dreadful green eyes which could kill you in minutes! It seemed that everyone were there, everyone except for one certain maid with golden ringlets. Sora looked around to find her best friend, but there were no signs of her everywhere! _"Where are you, Yuna? I hope she haven't forgotten what day it is today… or else she's completely screwed.",_Sora thought anxiously. It was a really important day. The head maid asked for everyone's best efforts to make it all happen and at least enough to please both the groom and especially the bride to be. If not, their heads would appear on the king's next plate.

Later on after the meeting, Sora went out to look for her. Luckily for Yuna her best friend was intelligent and could swallow all the information at the same time in proportion to a certain young lady, who didn't pay much attention to anything the head maid told her every time she got scolded and what was worse, everything that came in her one ear went out the next. All that Sora hoped for was that she had a good excuse for not attending the most important meeting of their lives, especially when the head maid was there. She knocked on her blue door with the white cut-out heart on it a couple of times, but no one answered nor opened it. When she finished her third knock and still no Yuna opened the door, she decided to go back just in case she was at the ballroom after all. On her way back she saw something unusual. A young woman with copper ringlets hugged a tall guy with gorgeous emerald green eyes somehow romanticly in the middle of the hallways. She looked too familiar. The girl giggled as he held tighter around her waist. Who could it be? What she saw next was a total shock! All of a sudden the boy gave her a sweet peck on the cheek! "Wait, isn't that…?"

* * *

><p>They were on their way to the hospital with a beautiful bouquet of flowers to cheer up their sick little mouse. Hopefully she would like it, but if not, next time they would just come empty handed. Once they arrived at her door they opened it carefully in case she wasn't decent dressed and slid the flowers through the opening and waited for her now soft voice to call them in, but nothing happened. Not a single sound came out the room before ten seconds later. "Eva, are you th-", Koji asked and opened the door! In a matter of minutes his whole face was covered in sticky green soup! It stank like hell. "Ops, sorry ma'am! Wrong room. C'mon, Koji…", Rick apologized to the old lady with only a small white hospital gown on just enough to cover her saggy old bag of flours and dragged Koji away.<p>

"SHUT UP! IT'S NOT MY FAULT! I THOUGHT IT WAS EVA'S ROOM!". No matter how much Koji begged Rick couldn't stop laughing! He could practically pee his pants by laughing so hard. After wiping off what Rick believed was a bucket of "yummy" good old fashion puke, they went off to look for her real room and this time with caution. By the time they arrived at her room it was completely empty. Abounded like a dessert and no single soul to see. When they asked the confused nurses and the big amount of staff at the hospital, they couldn't help them at all. Now they were beginning to get worried. Where did she go? "Well, if she ran away I'm sure we'll find her easily. With all her injuries she wouldn't make it a mile out there.", Rick said calmly and smirked to then go out and look for her again with his monster partner and friend, Koji, covered in green and sticky goo.

* * *

><p>All the walking back to the palace had worn her out. It required all her abilities and strength to pull herself together for each step closer she took the massive gates. She was out of breath and it felt like her lungs were going to shrink into wrinkly old prunes. At first the guards weren't sure if they should let the young earthling who struggled outside the gates pass by because of her unhealthy condition, but then let her inn before she collapsed unconsciously on the ground again. "Miss. Miss. Miss! Wake up, please. If you prefer to sleep here, we suggest that you head home and rest instead or should we send you to the hospital?", they asked her. The guards could tell by all her deep scars and wounds and the ill expression on her face that she needed to get some help, but who from?<p>

"I'm fine, I'm fine…", she insisted and continued walking further into the palace. Then all of a sudden she heard someone screaming either of pain or they're just retarded, at the end of the long halls. It was on. The two guys fought as if they were going to slay each other down. Her pair of crimson eyes widen. It was him. "NOOO, ALAN! DON-". Within seconds she broke down on the floor like a sheer vase breaking to pieces. The shock had hit him like a a rapid bullet. Instantly the alcohol in his bloods vanished like dust so he could regret what he had done. He was not the only one. Aikka looked pitiful at the girl lying now half dead on the harsh ground coughing up blood once more. Because he was oblivious of the fact that the girl right in front of his eyes was the girl he used to feel something extremely special for, he couldn't react as fast as he used to. Instead a pack of two of her best friends hurried to help her up! "EVA! EVA! EVA!", they screamed loud enough for the prince to hear it. Still he couldn't understand why and what was happening. Everything was so out of control he had to escape it. Over and over again her name appeared in his blurry mind. All of a sudden a slight memory shot right through him. As he ran he tried to empty his head of the thoughts of her, but he just couldn't. They were stuck to him like glue. _"No, Aikka! Stop thinking about her! Do you even know her?",_ he forced himself to think. _"It cannot be…"._

* * *

><p>Sora swore that if he saw her right now with that guy flirting and tickling her, he would literally rip the boy's head off immediately. The shock was too much. She knew that the two lovebirds were together now, but how come she be just across the hallways and flirting with some other guy if she really loved him? "What do you think you're doing?", she asked furiously as she dragged her by the left ear to the walls. Sora could have died of shock when she saw who the girl was. "YUNA?", she exclaimed in a loud voice! "What are you doing here?"<p>

"What do you mean? We were just… aaah…". The long pause told her best friend that she somehow lied. Sora really hated it when someone lied to her, especially if the person was either someone she loved or someone she trusted her life with. "We were just talking…"

"Talking? Did you know that we had an important meeting just a few hours ago? Besides if you did not attend, why are you here? Should you not be with Stan by now?"

"I was about to, but I had something I had to take care of first…". Sora saw right through her and stared at her with a keen eye. Something wasn't right. "Like what? Flirting with others than your boyfriend?"

"Flirting? Haha, that is ridiculous. No? Like I said, I had some things I had to take care of first.". The last thing Sora said before leaving her, was that she hoped that she was telling the truth or else. Speaking of the devil, right after she left her, an overjoyed young man came bouncing happily over to her and kissed her right cheek right after giving her a sweet and long hug. Oddly enough, she didn't hug him back. Instead she just stood there, not talking at all. "Are you alright?"

"Yes… I was just-"

"See you soon, Yuna!", the boy shouted and winked before he headed off. Stan turned around and then looked at her to ask who he was. "Oh, he? He is just a good friend of mine...".

* * *

><p>After an eternal stay at the crazy hospital she could finally wake up finding herself in her own comfortable bed with the fresh smell of soft crimson duvet. Unfortunately it wasn't a dream to wake up relieved that she wasn't among wicked nurses and doctors again, but rather very heavy because of the painful headache. It felt like someone had dropped a giant stone on her head and punched her right in the center of her biggest wound, around the chest. Right there where Alan had hit her just before the lights went totally off for her. But what was good for her eyes was the sight of her best friends sleeping like adorable little retards beside her on the floor and couch. She laughed as the drool in the corner of Rick's mouth hang loose like a spider hanging from its silky web. Eva could see that everything was beginning to get better now. It was nice to be "home" and see your friends again, all safe and sound. But the peace was broken the moment someone all of a sudden knocked on her door! "Come in!", she shouted from her bed. A tall nourasian in white feathered shirt and blue velvet flat trousers tucked in his boots came forward.<p>

"The king wishes to speak with you, Miss Wei. His majesty will be waiting in the throne room."

* * *

><p>"WHAT? I CAN'T BELIEVE YOU LIED TO ME!"<p>

"No, wait. You don't understand… we were just talking!"

"Talking, huh? How do you explain talking when he actually kissed you on the cheek, Yuna!"

"Kissed me? That's absurd! What are you talking about?". He exploded like a volcano. The anger just burst out of him like lava. There he was trying to get a real answer from his girlfriend, which he assumed as lying in front of him to protect the other guy. "Don't act like you don't know anything! Sora told me everything!"

"Stan… I-", she squealed as he pressured her onto the wall now almost scaring her to death. "He kissed you didn't he?". It was a long pause between them. Hearing her not answering made everything worse! "DIDN'T HE? HUH?", he shouted now making tears float up her eyes. Stan raised his fist up in the air. "Hey, you! Leave her alone!", a voice suddenly yelled and shove him away from her! Once he got up back on his feet again he did the same thing and pushed him even further away. Now Yuna was caught in the middle.

"What do you think you're doing?"

"We were just talking… like you and her did just a few hours ago!". The boy looked at Yuna. She gave him a slight nod. All of a sudden he began smiling.

"Oh, you think we were… no, no, no. Please, do not misunderstand. It is not what you ought it out to be.", he chuckled. Stan looked at him as if he just had insulted him. What did he mean that it wasn't what he thought it was? For crying it out loud, he literally smooched his girlfriend! How come he say that it didn't mean anything. Again, he raised his fit and aimed for the guy's head! But then Yuna came forward and demanded him to stop! He tried to push her aside so he could really smack down the guy for insulting him and her, but Yuna wouldn't bulge. Instead she stood there and now hugged the guy. It was an intense jealousy boiling inside him. "OUT OF MY WAY!"

"NO, STAN! PLEASE STOP!", she screamed. Yuna waited till everything calmed down. She took her time to explain it for him. "He is right. It was absolutely nothing like you thought it was!"

"What do you mean?"

"Keiran is my brother…". Stan's eyes popped out on a size of big balloons. Now everything made sense. But wait! There were more things he had to clear up! "BROTHER? If he's your brother… than that means that you…". Keiran nodded carefully as he held protectively around his little sister. "That is correct…", he said.

* * *

><p><em>He could still remember what his son had shared with him just a few hours ago before he went to the breakfast table. The prince had a depressed expression on his face as if he had grieved over someone precious he had lost. When the king and the prince sat down on the wooden bench in the gorgeous garden, father and son had a little talk. It was nice of his father to offer support for him to ease out his burdens once in a while, but to the king it was unusual hearing his son sharing his feelings with him. It seemed like something was really bothering him and made his soul restless. <em>

_"Have you ever experienced that feeling when it feels like you have lost something very precious to you, but you cannot remember it because you have forgotten?". His surprising question aroused curiosity in the king's heart, but he also knew that this day had to come. "What do you mean?"_

_"I have noticed that since the day I was discharged from the hospital, everyone around me have begun yelling and screaming a certain name whenever I am near that girl…". It all became silent afterwards, but then he began speaking again. "I cannot understand why, but when I see her I feel pity somehow and all of a sudden something begins heating up in my heart…"._

_What he just said was heartbreaking for the king. Of course he wanted to confess everything, but his overwhelming pride and nagging conscience wouldn't let him. Instead he chose the other way. "That earth girl…", he began and took a deep breath. "She tried to kill you once, but with no success this time…". The prince's blue eyes widen drastically! Kill him? "Because you were the prince and the only rightful heir to this kingdom, she wanted to get rid of you first before she could take over our land…". Aikka had reached a terrible conclusion. To the prince, that meant that the girl who was sicken to death was a mysterious and nothing but an innocent-looking assassin trying to kill him before she could rule over their kingdom. The king grinned as he took in all his anger. It was only right that he should be mad at her. "But fear not my son… I will take care of it.", he promised. Lao reassured him that she would never see the beautiful sun rising up their planet again._

The mighty doors of the majestic throne room opened as the young earthling slowly stepped in. She bowed deeply and greeted the king with respect. But the king had his same strict face covered in baggy frustrated wrinkles. "You wanted to talk with me, your majesty?". Just saying the word was just like drinking poison. Oh, how she really hated facing the bitter old man with his stupid crown calling himself "the king". He directed her to the round table made of the strongest and most powerful tree, which grew only each thousand year, where he and his royal councils usually sat and discussed issues regarding the kingdom. There she was. Sitting in the palace's most comfortable chair of all. The king's second throne. The chair was in red velvet with silky smooth leather pillow she could sit on.

Then the king began speaking. "Do you know what day it is tomorrow, Miss Wei?", the king asked her with a little grin on his face. Eva hoped that his question wasn't the reason for why he wanted to talk with her. Instead she guessed Wednesday.

"Yes, indeed. Tomorrow is a very important day. I would love for you to come to the royal ballroom. Please dress decently because many of my good friends will attend and it is a semiformal occasion. So what do you say. Will you be there?". For a minute she thought about it. What could the king have in mind now? Had he planned something awful this time too? Should she really go? "There is no need to answer me right now. I will be waiting for you here whenever you are ready. However if you do not attend I-"

"I'M COMING!", it burst out of her all of a sudden!

"My oh my, that is a very wise choice of you, Miss Wei.", he said as if he was impressed. After that he didn't say no more. Just when she was about to walk out the doors the king stopped her suddenly! "Oh, and Miss Wei…". Now his face turned into a hideous expression with even a greater grin. "You, young lady are not even to look at my son. Is that clear?". Eva was shocked. She didn't want to say yes, but she also didn't want to say no either. Instead she stood there frozen like a statue with eyes wider than ever as the king passed her. Not look at Aikka? What could he mean by that? Because she didn't want to make an even bigger scene out of the situation, she decided to just leave while she still could.

On her way back she came across a certain young man. At first they didn't know if they should just avoid each other by walking away or try to work out something. She really didn't want to talk to him after what happened. It hard for both of them to forget it. But before she could continue her way back, he stopped her and asked how she was. Of course, she said she was fine and asked him back and he replied the same answer. It was an awkward silence between them. "So… how's your injury? Are you recovering or did the doctors tell you that you will be retarded for life?"

"What did you say?". Now she had finally caught up. There they were again. Finally back to their usual self, bickering like cat and dog.

"I said... Will. You. Be. Retarded. For lifeeeeeeee?". Eva grabbed his cheek and pulled it as if they were made of chewing gum. He shouted of pain repeatedly yelling that it hurt. But that didn't mean he would give up that easily either! "OUCH!", they both screamed as they dragged each other's cheeks! "LET GO!"

"NO, YOU LET GO, YOU IDIOT!"

"ALRIGHT! ON THE COUNT OF THREE!". When they finally returned back to their normal faces and calmed down completely they laughed and smiled at each other. "Hey, listen. I was invited to something special at the ballroom tomorrow and I was wondering if you wanted to go with me?"

"Are you asking me out, Eva?", Alan grinned happily.

"Wow, don't get the wrong idea now, mister-". Suddenly he hugged her tightly almost squeezing her to death. Finally she had somehow shown interest for him! "Of course I'll go with you!", he cheered as he swirled her around the floor. They were so lost in their happiness they didn't notice that he stood and watched them the whole time. Just the sight of them together made him a little restless again. Why? Because he could remember something about her, but he didn't know what. Just the fact seeing her that happy because of the other guy depressed him slightly. "Hey, isn't that…", Alan suddenly said. Once again the shock hit her as their eyes met. Eva pulled herself out of Alan's arms immediately when she saw him! Suddenly the prince said something so surprisingly they both couldn't believe it!

* * *

><p><strong>AN:**  
><strong>Aaaaaand stop! Yep, bet you all hate me now for leaving a bombshell right here and not letting you know what Aikka said, huh? ;) Hehe, don't worry the next chapter will be out soon. If you want to find out who Yuna really is and what Aikka said, stay tuuuuned for the next chapter!<strong>

**Oh, just wanted to remind you guys that the competition is still on. The next chapter will be the last chance to enter. So if you still haven't entered, there's still a chance! Good luck and see you next time ~**


	22. Chapter 22: Return of the lost prince

**A/N:**  
><strong>WOO HOO! This is great, guys! Can't believe we've come this far. After this, the next last chapter will come. Soon after this one the end will come too sadly enough, but hey! It was so much fun writing this chapter! So thanks for all the reviews till now. It makes me really happy seeing that so many of you have actually read my very first fanfict story! :')<strong>

* * *

><p><strong>CHAPTER 22<strong>

There they were again. Caught up in one another's eyes. She froze by the static stare of his majestic pair of blue eyes. Once again they left her out of breath. It was a piercing silence between them after he swirled her down on the floor again. It strangled her heart for each step he took closer and closer to her. Then all of a sudden he mouthered something they couldn't believe. Her crimson eyes widen drastically as she watched his lips form the words she had longed to hear for so long. "Have… I seen you before?". A shot of protectiveness hit Alan when he held tightly around her wrist. She tried to disentangle herself out of his grip, but he just wouldn't let go. When her painful squealing reached his sheer breaking point, he automatically grabbed her hand and pulled her away from him! Although he knew she was dangerous something inside him acted immediately. For a second she felt safe in the warming arms of the prince again, but then all hell broke loose. Just like a thin rope, Alan dragged along with him as he ran! No matter how much she didn't want to let go off the prince's hand, hers slipped right off him. She screamed his name over and over.

"NO! ALAN, STOP! LET GO OF ME!". She broke down on the floor. Torn up by the memory of losing him again. Just when he had tried to remember her, he tore her to pieces again. It was always like this. Whenever she had the chance, destiny just wouldn't let her. When Alan finally pulled himself together to comfort her, she rejected his offer with no hesitation. "Eva, I-". With that Alan grabbed her shoulders and pulled her into his arms, although she fought and fought against it. He begged her to stop crying, but how could she? Now that she finally found Aikka, nothing went to the better way. Still, there was hope. At least that's what she believed. On the other hand, Alan wouldn't let her. He knew how hurt she would be if she found out. Once more she tried to break free. "Alan, please… I need to find him…", she sobbed. He looked her deeply in the eyes seeing right through her. "To what? Let him hurt you again?"

"You know I can't turn my back on him! But I promise… if you let me go, I'll take care of you.". He looked away. It was painful to hear her so devoted to someone else. Of course he was sorry for hurting her once, but the jealousy was too strong for him to realize what he really was doing to her. The thought of that someone else could make her happier than he could, crushed him. "I don't need your pity… I want your love! Please love me too!"

"I can't, Alan… because…"

"Because of him? Have you forgotten our friendship?"

"Of course not! I never want to either!". It had never changed. Sometimes he wished he could be someone else. Someone the girl of his dreams truly loved. But every time he found something he really wanted, he lost it. Why? Because he was always put in the "just friends" category. Just friends. He could never imagine them being just friends for the rest of their lives. Alan wanted more. "Good… because you know what? I DON'T WANT TO BE YOUR FRIEND ANYMORE!". It hurt too much.

* * *

><p>Finally they could breathe out, that's at least what they thought at first, but then they looked shocked at the empty bed before looking horrified at each other. After all the troubles they had gone through, she was gone again! "Unbelievable! What is she? Some kind of Harry Potter with an invisible cloak or what?", Koji complained frustrated over the thought of her losing again. Rick pat him on the back to calm his hysteric nerves before heading for the dining room. With her wounds she wouldn't make it far and even so, both of them knew that she had to lose her common sense first before just running away idiotically with her injuries.<p>

* * *

><p><em>"That is correct…".<em> Stan remembered still remembered it. He was her brother all along. How could he have not known that? Still, he had the rights. After all, she was his girlfriend. But why didn't she ever tell him that Keiran was her brother? Now that he knew that he could only see her from one view and one view only. She was no longer the ordinary maid with the humble and sweet personality he fell in love with, but now she was the sister of the prince's best friend, which meant that she basically came from an aristocratic family. He knew it was over. Stan wouldn't stand a chance to win the heart of someone with that high position in the community, especially when their family was so close to the royal family. _"Good job, Stan. When you finally get yourself a girlfriend, you have to let her go again… well, that's just great!",_he thought for himself. If only he hadn't fell in love with her.

But he sure wasn't the only one struggling. Yuna dealt with the same problem. How was she going to success convincing her incredibly strict parents and her protective brother that she really was in love with not just an ordinary person, but a human! Even though she loved him so much, how was she going to tell him her true identity?

* * *

><p>After an exhausting day, it was time to prepare herself for another one. But this time she wasn't sure of what it would turn out to be since he just mentioned it would be one of the most important days of her life. As she pulled the silver zipper on the back of her dip dyed dress in pastel shades of blue, copper and white, she thought of him. He was right. Of course it pained her too to see her best friend being hurt because she couldn't give him what he desired. Why couldn't she? Could it be that her heart already belonged to someone else? Someone she couldn't forget? But now that she thought of it, it was very devastating to lose him again. Everything was so messed up, out of control. She lost a very dear friend of her and someone so precious he was stuck in her head all the time. How was she ever going to fix it all up again? Instead of making her situation worse, she decided to lay it all behind her for now like changing out from old clothes and into new ones, and try to enjoy the last days of her vacation at the magnificent kingdom as much as possible. No matter what the day ought to be, she wanted to get over with it and face the challenges ahead of her. With or without him.<p>

On her way to the garden where everyone waited excitedly, she came across a young man with emerald green eyes sparkling in his simple, yet fantastic button down shirt with matching matte brown vest. As expected he smiled back at her as he complimented her gorgeous dress. Just when both tried to walk gracefully down the balustrade stairs made of shimmering professional nourasian glass, they met a certain pair of two guys dressed in smoking hot suits in black. "Wow, look at you!", Koji said as he marveled her colorful dress.

"Wait… did he invite you too?"

"Yeah. Why? Afraid that I'll steal all the food?", Rick joked around.

"No, it's just… I thought he only invited me.". Suddenly they heard broken notes jumping out from a trumpet so loud it could kill a cat! It was time to go. All around them were so many wonderful eye-catching things that took their breath away. Among them were famous dukes, highly positioned barons and their flawless wives, noble duchesses in pampered dresses and glittering hats with soft feathers, and everyone from the aristocratic families. What was this crazy convention really? Some kind of party for rich people? It was nothing like the festivals or parties back at home. Above them, she recognized the man with the velvet pants tucked into his leather boots announcing countless of weird and extra ordinary names she couldn't even pronounce! _"Thank God, I was born human and with a normal name!",_ she breathed out relieved. After greeting so many people she couldn't even remember their names or faces off, she relaxed down on a chair. Her extreme heels were torturing her toes giving her swollen tomatoes. While she sat and rested she could hear people, especially the ladies walk by whispering to each other something either bad or delightful about the prince. _"Why would they talk about Aikka now? I thought this was just a normal gal-"._Then all of a sudden she saw a familiar, but vicious face making her way superficially to the round silky blue table where the royal family was sitting enjoying and chattering with their snobby little friends. She somehow managed to look glamorous in her one shouldered green dress with outstanding crystal clear rhinestones around her waist and tiara with the nourasian crest. Still she had her regular hideous attitude. Once she noticed she scowled, but then grinned when the king rose up from his chair to walk up to some big stage just a few meters away to call everyone's attention. She listened with ears sharp as knives.

"WELCOME EVERYONE!", Lao began. As he continued the queen looked anxiously at her and felt like she had to admit what really was going on before she got hurt, but when she saw the happiness of her son's face she couldn't afford messing it up. "First, I must say that it is a great honor to arrange this spectacular gala. It is not every day we have the chance to celebrate this one special day. A day that everyone will be sure to remember, especially this young man and his beautiful lady.", the king said cheerfully. Then it all made sense for her! Finally she had understood what this was really all about! She knew what was about to come and therefore she hurried. Hurried before it was too late!

* * *

><p>As he sat there alone in his room again with a bottle of ice-cold pills, he thought about her. Did he really make the right choice by leaving her? To him, nothing was more important than their friendship. He cherished it more than anything in the world, but why couldn't she accept him like she accepted the prince so easily? They were like dominos. He fell for her and she fell for another. The pain was burring itself deeper into his black hole of a heart. <em>"For crying it out loud, we're both humans! I don't know what she sees in him, but can't let them be together!"<em>. So from where he stood now, he promised himself that he wouldn't let that happen. He swore that he would do everything in his power to prevent them from falling in love.

* * *

><p>Yuna looked out to the humungous crowd. There, east for all the people, beside the glowing punch, he stood alone sighing constantly. She knew why. "How are you planning to tell mother and father, dear sister of mine?", a gentle voice asked as he patted her shoulder. A hint of sadness slid to her face. Keiran stroke the back of his sister. "You know. I have never seen you with such strong feelings for someone, especially not a human…"<p>

"I do… it's just that…", she gulped. Yes, it was wrong of her to lie about her true identity. But because of his sickness, she developed the need for providing the medicine that could save his life by working hard every day at the astonishing palace under the disguise of pretending to be a maid. He was grateful to his sister, but he knew that she also had to prioritize what she wanted. "What? Where-", she was about to ask before he mysteriously left her again.

* * *

><p>Everyone gasped as their eyes widen of shock when a certain young lady with hair as black as the fallen night sky hopped up on the stage to drag him along with her to escape all in once! The king dropped his glass of wine on the floor and commanded the guards to capture her immediately! But it was too late. She was far ahead of them. Even though he tried to stop and retrieve back to the garden, she refused to let him go again and headed for the royal stable. Fast as a lightning she opened the gate where the giant blue beetle lied and rested. "WHAT ARE YOU DOING TO MY MOUNT?", he asked terrified as she called upon him. She smiled. Just seeing her smile was twisting his mind. There was something in her smile that he couldn't quite understand. It was as if he had seen her before, but where? All of a sudden they were high up in the fresh air! They could hear the furious king ordering her to come back down while the stressed out guards tried to blow her down with fire arrows in hope for G'dar to be frighten enough to land again. The smile on her face grew wider as she pulled her tongue out to them before disappearing through the skies with a golden sunset ahead of them leaving with a joyful laugh. When the touch of her tickling black hair danced on his skin, he could remember something. Her laughter. Loud, but sweet and bubbly. All those things… what did they mean?<p>

By the time they landed, oddly enough, he was as calm as a little lamb when the soft green grass melted through their toes. But after a while he was back to himself, still angry about her abducting him from his own engagement party. What would his fiancée and parents say about this? They must have thought he was insane enough to run away with a human to the lake. "Why have you taken me here?", he demanded an answer. A little smirk painted her face making the prince's eyes broader. Her hair fell in locks between the flowers with fragranced and pleasant smell as she lied in the humming meadow. "So we could have a little talk. Why? Is that too much to ask or are you afraid that your little princess will be mad at you?", she mocked him causing the prince to become even angrier.

"Yes, it is wrong! In fact, I could have you arrested for hijacking me from my own engagement party!"

"So what? It's not like you love her?", she asked. Now she was really pissed off. For someone who had to be forced to be married to someone he didn't even know that well first of all because of his amnesia and because he didn't understand what love really meant, he didn't know what he really was dealing with. "Or do you?". The prince felt threatened. It was outrageous! Absolutely nonsense!

"How dare you question my love for her? Of course I love her! Why wouldn't I?"

"BECAUSE YOU DON'T!", she shouted furiously! How could he be so blind? Right in front of her was the girl he had real feelings for, but he couldn't see it or accept it. "Because you don't, Aikka. Can't you see that what _you're_doing is wrong? You don't love her and you know that. Because you know what? She doesn't love you either. She's just after your money! So please, list-". He shove her away with a darken face. Through his ears he could hear nothing but her infringing his declaration of love for the princess. Sure she had the rights to ask, but when she crossed the line, he was left with no choice. First of all he had to clear something up. Something that had bothered him since the day he was discharged from the hospital. Everything was too blurry for him to understand, but in his heart he knew that something had made him restless inside just by looking at her. There were so many confusing questions that needed to be answered. How did she know so much about this? It was if she really knew him, the true him. But what was really the truth?

"Who are you really?"

* * *

><p>Finally the moment was there. He grabbed the chance as soon as possible. It was now or never. Keiran pulled him out from the crowd before the heaviest duchesses stomped him down like a pissed off elephant. What he didn't knew was that she sat there and waited anxiously on a chair just near by the punch where he stood. She froze at the sight of him. Even though he couldn't understand a word she yelled to him, he knew she would whoop the cheeks of his tan butt later and be extremely sorry for it. "NO, WAIT!", both shouted when he ran rapidly away from them like the wind. Once again they were alone. An awkward silence crept between them. Nothing made sense. It was really unnecessary for him to bring him to her. "You look nice…", he said suddenly breaking the quietness. She looked at his suit. Although it was covered in dust and disgusting stains, he didn't look that bad either. The silence kept on going, but sooner or later something had to be done. "Hey, listen… about what happened…", he began but stopped when both swallowed a big lump in their throats. All feelings were bursting through them both as the heath of their body pressed their hearts to beat faster because of the nervousness. Suddenly he felt the warmth of her lips inches away from his! It was an unexpected action, but his entire body followed her and slowly, little by little he closed his lids to lay his hands around the petite jaws of hers. Voices with the tones of shock screamed!<p>

"Mother, father!", she gasped.

* * *

><p>"What do you mean?". She walked closer to look deeply into his heavenly blue eyes. He almost fell for her innocence again when he remember what his father told him. His twisted mind confused him with all his father's mysterious advices. If she really knew him, how come he couldn't remember her? What really happened after his eternal stay at the wicked hospital? Every each memory of them burst out of her. The good old times back at the race, her first time riding G'dar with him, when they were eating, dancing and laughing together. Even the times when he saved her countlessly! It didn't make sense. All he could or rather wanted to remember were the times he spent with the princess, nothing else. But still, what she was saying made him restless. Just the word "save" stuck to his mind like glue. Why? Why couldn't he remember? He wanted to trust her. To believe every word. But he just couldn't. To him they were nothing but lies. Life-threatening lies! Who was he to choose to listen to? His own flesh and blood or the girl who might really be out after his life? "Did your dad tell you something about me?", she asked now annoyed. Eva knew it all along. The hypocrite of a king must have planned it all to distance her and Aikka from each other. Now she had enough of his games. If she couldn't fight him, she joined him. Fire against fire. "He's using you, Aikka! He's nothing but vile and cruel! Can't you see that?". His eyes were burning with fury. No one had ever the guts to insult his father with such coarse things!<p>

"Don't deny it. You know it's true! HE'S US-". Her cheek swelled up immediately. Drops of blood dripped as she fell down on the stiffened glass. He hit her. Not only once, but twice. He had never hit her before. Everything turned black after his last words. They killed her. It was as if he literally ripped out her heart leaving her dead and frozen inside. But she didn't cry. Not a single tear fell from her blank eyes. She had enough. A deadly smile washed away her piercing pain. Slowly she rose up and walked to the water. Now she was about to fulfill his final wish. There were no more depressing tears for him to see. No more hurting. No more pain for both of them. "WHO ARE YOU REALLY?"

"My name. You call it out...", she whispered softly before letting herself fall. "I hope you can swim… because I can't.". Her body disappeared underneath the covers of foaming blue bubbles. She was gone. Far away from his eyes. At last it was over. But then. Suddenly a massive amount of memories flashed through his mind finally clearing up everything as he realized what just happened! His trembling lips were acting immediately trying desperately to form her name. "E… Ev-". His heart raced higher, the blood rushed through his body, all senses scurried everywhere more than ever. Her laugh, her smiles, her smell, the touch of her skin. Aikka's eyes widen.

"EVAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!", it burst out of him as he dove through the water.

She was nowhere to see. Her body had probably hit the never-ending seabed far into the forever darkness. Although his lungs were shrinking into the shapes of the tiniest raisins, he would fight for her. His muscles were pumping for each exhausting stroke. The pressure was wearing him out. Just one more exertion and he could risk his life. He was beginning to lose hope as his heart was beginning to run short. Then he saw something that might appear to be a head. But his eyes played tricky games with making him conceit and ignorant of the dangers in the waters. He turned around quickly to the sound of a massive wave behind him. It was only a matter of seconds before it stroke him! His last breath left him cold and shivering heading further and further into the deep. People above the glimmering bubbles screamed his name on and on. It was too late. Only a sheer gleam of light flashed by his eyes before everything faded into darkness. He had lost her.

* * *

><p>They spluttered in his room with a pale face. Their eyes were as grey as the shady clouds pouring heavy rain just outside his windows. Something was wrong. He could feel it. The shaking bottle slipped through his hands and broke into thousand glass fragments. It couldn't be true. He refused to believe it before he could see it with his own eyes. Her body lied on the river bank. Weak and ice cold. Not a single movement was seen. He followed her all the way, never letting go off her lifeless hand. Pathetic. That was the only word that he felt described himself right now. He should have been there for her. A devastated sigh reeked out his mouth as she disappeared from him. Would he ever see her again? There they sat. Waited and hoped. But for each hour that passed by their worries just grew bigger and bigger. Not a sound of good news were brought to them. Finally when they had come out, the doctors sigh. They did their best, but would it be enough to save her? "ALAN! COME BACK HERE! DON-!", Rick shouted after him. He couldn't stop his feet. The possibility of seeing her again would not be endless. It was now or never. The fear of that he might have lost her sent a shiver down his spines. He couldn't afford to lose her. Not now. Tears flooded down his cheeks as he pulled her head into his chest. Only a minute was given to him to say his final words before he was grudgingly pulled away from her. It broke his heart. He could have done something, but he didn't. Instead he watched her perishing from his eyes as the guards took him away. "NO! EVAAAAA!", he yelled constantly calling out her name. The thought of losing her again was not the only thing that made him afraid. Just the sight of that despicable man standing beside her bed and staring blankly at her raged madness within him. He grinned as he slowly placed his hands on her forehead.<p>

"NOOOO! DON'T TOUCH HER!"

* * *

><p>He woke up with meager drops of sweat gliding down his face gasping for air. The nightmare had scared him to death. Her name had haunted him in his deep sleep, but it was no longer a dream. He was back. Back to reality. Safe and sound. The prince had survived. Then he remembered something. He screamed out her name on top of his lungs. His hysteria became even more concerning as he tried to get out of bed to find her, when he stepped in. His pair of blue eyes looked shocked at him. Even as weak as ever he acted immediately.<p>

"Where is she?"

"Who?". The question burned fury in his heart. She was right all along. He was pretending.

"YOU KNOW WHO!". The king was back to himself. A grin planted on his face, evil and cruel as before. Even just seeing him like that made him restless. He knew that he had done something. Something that would hurt him deeply. Something that might even tear his heart apart. "WHAT HAVE YOU DONE TO HER?". Lao rose up from the chair next to him and began walking away. Suddenly his muscles cooperated with him. But the guards held him in place causing him to become even more desperate. The king commanded him to say in bed. He needed to rest in the following days coming. What did he mean? Before the king headed out the doors he turned back to look at him one last time. The expression on his face had never changed. The next words that came out his mouth pierced Aikka's heart. No, it couldn't be true. All hope that he was lying left his mind blankness. Furiousness shot him right away screaming and cursing his father's name as he watched him walk away. A coward. That's what he was. All mighty and powerful in front of the people, but he was nothing but a coward running away from his problems.

His words played on and on in his mind. _"If you must know… she will be leaving."_

* * *

><p><strong>AN:**  
><strong><br>So… what did you think? Awesome or awful? Yup, that's right. The king had decided to make Eva leave. But will Aikka allow that**** to happen? And furthermore, what did he mean that the prince would need his strength for the "following days"? Who knows? Find out in the next chapter! I don't know about you guys, but the last part would probably be the part I would love the most of this chapter if I was a reader. What part did you like the best? Let me know in a review below! :D**

**Ok, I know I said that this would be the last time you could enter the competition, but since there's another chapter coming out soon, I thought why not give them just one more chance? So that means that you guys still have the chance to enter! Remember, after the next chapter the competition will be closed and I will announce the winner. Do your best now and good luck ~**


	23. Chapter 23: Goodbye forever

**A/N:**

**Holy canoley, you won't even guess how much research I've done for this chapter XDXD so you better be happy with it! A heck lot of job, but it's all for you guys! YAAAAY! Finally the next last chapter. You can pretty much predict what's going to happen since you've read the title, so yeah… be prepared for some intense stuff!**

**CHAPTER 23  
><strong>

* * *

><p>Everything went by so fast. It seemed just yesterday when the lights flashed by her eyes. Her lids opened wide at the sound of someone calling her name. His voice, strong and fierce as the glowing flames inside the fireplace just beside her. She was no longer in her dreams nor in the kingdom of death, but back. Alive and survived to live another day in reality. A hoarse voice struggled its way up her throat of a dessert. "You… why are you here?". The deadly words, which came from his snake-like tongue, were back. He came to warn her. Warn her for the very last time. The king rose up from the chair covered in red velvet. It was one of the most important days of not only his life, but for the sake of the unstable future of their kingdom. The prize he had to pay for her selfish actions was endless. He had always let her go, but now it was final. Lao held tightly around wire that provided oxygen to her lungs from the breathing machine. "You are to leave soon, Miss Wei. You have caused nothing but harm and are a great danger to our kingdom."<p>

"WHAT?", she exclaimed shocked. "What about Aikka?"

"This was his final wish. He wished…". The king paused. It was hard to tell her, but it had to be done. "He wished to never see you again…". Her eyes widen. Never see her again? Her head began shaking itself again and again. She wouldn't let herself accept the truth. "No, you're lying!"

"Miss Wei! Miss Wei! Calm down!", the nurses shouted as they tried to hold her down. She was becoming a wild animal. Fighting for her freedom. Fighting for her what might be her last chance of seeing him again. Her arms and legs fought their exhausting battle, but they had twice as much power as her. It was no use. Her entire body was attached to the bed like an anchor. "AIKKAAAAA!", she screamed on top of her lungs as she watched the callous king fade away through the door. Would she ever see him again?

* * *

><p>Both clutched to each other. She had lost him once because of her own foolishness. This time she wouldn't let go. Not again. Not ever. Although it was wrong in the patronizing eyes of her parents, nothing was more right than her true love for him. Even if that meant that she would risk her venerable relationship with her own flesh and blood. "LET GO OF MY DAUGHTER, YOU RUFFIAN!", her father shouted before storming at him. All of a sudden their hands were detached from each other! Her mother held her back as she watched him fall in the truculent hands of her father. She begged him to stop, but soon Stan was beginning to hit the crucial point. All the fighting and the sight of her lover almost dying in the hands of her father were too much!<p>

"STOP! FATHER! PLEASE!", she cried in his defense protecting what was left of him. Bloody, wounded and very near blacking out. From her father's point of view it was a coarse indignantly! To him, she had betrayed her own race by falling in love with a human. It was an unforgivable crime and a disgrace to their family! In his eyes, Stan would lead to nothing but destitution.

"Please, do not harm him anymore! I beg you."

"If you wish to be forgiven… then let go of him."

"I cannot do that. I cannot let go of him. Anything else, but not him, father.", she begged him. Stan was the only thing that mattered the most to her now. She could never let go of what she had. Her body shivered beside his feet begging him for mercy. "If you wish to see us again, then let go of him."

"No, father. Please don't do this…", she said trembling after him as he began walking away. "Father! PLEASE! NO!"

* * *

><p>After a while, everything had settled down. Her body went into a deep sleep relaxing and rebuilding every muscle to provide new energy each day. Slowly and little by little there were some progresses. Soon she would be fully recovered enough to discharge from the hospital. Still, her face was the same every day. Not showing signs of happiness. Only tears were running down her eyes. Everyone around her was beginning to become too concerned. Some were too confused to understand her. It seemed that she had lost everything. Everything that really meant the world to her. Her reasons to laugh and smile every day, her values, her dignity, her friends and never the less him. The words kept replaying in her mind. <em>"He wished to never see you again…"<em>.

It knocked on the door. Unexpectedly the boy with the emerald green eyes came forward smiling as ever. Somehow it softened her down. He sat down on the feather light velvet chair beside her. Her sore eyes told him everything. Exhausted, worn out, nothing but extremely tired. Her soul must have ached from so much pain. Now that she needed some encouragement to go on with her life, unfortunately he was there to break everything down again. In his hands, he carried a heavy message directly from the cunning heart of the king. "Well, are you going to keep staring at me like that or what?", she asked attempting to crack a laugh. He immediately picked himself together and apologized for being so lost in his own thoughts. Keiran feared that she might not be able to smile again after this. Now she was pointing at the letter in his hands. Clearly, he didn't want to tell her because he knew how hurt she would be if she found out. "Are you hiding something from me?".

"Of course not!"

"Then let me see that.". He just couldn't. It would be too painful. Just like Alan and the prince, he promised himself not to let one tear fall from her eyes again. She became more and more demanding when she believed that it might be something important from the prince. Maybe he changed his mind and wanted her to stay? Maybe it was nothing but a lie after all? She had to read it. Whether he gave it to her or not.

"Give it to me…"

"No, I can't."

"What do you mean you can't? It has my name on it! Give it to me, Keiran!"

"NO, EVA! WAI-". It was too late. The letter was now in her very hands. For a second it was silent. Her eyes dashed desperately back and forth. Suddenly it went black in her heart. What was written on the little piece of paper had paralyzed her completely. His name. Written perfectly in nourasian signs along with hers, the evil witch. It was an invitation. She began rising up from the bed trying to escape, but because of his anxiousness for her he held her down. This time he did everything he could to prevent her from hurting herself again. But Eva had enough. "LEEET ME GO!", she screamed while shoving him away. She had to run. Run away from all the pain. When her legs couldn't bear the weight of the pain any longer she broke down on the floor just outside the walls of the hospital. Why? Why always her? The pain in her heart was too much. Now it was obvious that he had forgotten about her entirely. Wishing to never see her again. How could he be so coldhearted? His heart had become just as malicious as his father's. From that moment on she had not only lost him, but herself too. Nothing was right anymore. She couldn't stop the tears from falling any longer. There was nothing she could do now. It hurt too much hearing her voice again and again telling her that it was over. She had to accept the bitter truth. _"He's getting married, Eva…", _she sobbed.

* * *

><p>They hadn't seen each other for days. Since the day he was brutally separated from her, he never stopped thinking of her. All his thoughts were now focused on her. Not hearing from the doctors of any improvement made his soul worry sick. Who knew? Something terrible could have happened to her. Alan didn't even want to think about the last solution. It was impossible. How could such a life loving girl like her end up in the kingdom of death? She wouldn't and he knew that. <em>"Get over it, Alan. She's gonna be ok…",<em>he hoped in his mind as he walked out the door with fragrant flowers in his hands. With all those heavy burdens on her shoulders, she needed probably someone to help her up to the lights again. He was on his way to her room when he heard the sound of someone whimpering in the back of the walls. The voice. Soft and seemed to be torn apart. It all sounded too familiar. He dropped the flowers when he turned around the corner. Tears were flooding down her cheeks as she held one hand over her eyes. He knew that something was wrong. "Eva? Eva? Why are you crying?", he asked as he tried to remove her hand from her face. But she kept on weeping quietly. Suddenly she began thumping her chest!

"Hey, what's wrong? Where does it hurt?", he asked as he held her in his arms trying to comfort her. But he knew the answer already. She broke into a hysteria that kept on going for hours. No one could ever understand how hurt she was. How would she ever going to bear all the pain?

* * *

><p>Everywhere they looked the maids and others kept running around like crazy carrying heavy things that could crush their back instantly if not careful, all the time. It seemed that something special was coming up. Rick was about to doze off on the bench when Koji pointed at something to his right. To their surprise it was him! He slogged towards them with an unexpected expression planted on his face. It wasn't like him. "Hey, why such a long face? Did something happen?", Rick asked as he sat down beside them. But Stan didn't answer. Instead he kept quiet. Then when Koji asked him again everything just burst out of him like a bubble! "What! What do you mean you'll never see her again?", both asked with eyes huge as bowling balls. They had broken up. Although he wished that he could keep her, he had let her go. If her family was something important she couldn't let go off, who was he to stand in her way? They were about to object when a man with silver hair in a yellow flared shirt came forward. Both Rick and Koji felt like they had seen him before, but where? "You must be Miss Wei's friends?", he asked them in a strange tone.<p>

"Yes, why?". Suddenly he pulled out a long letter written with their names on it. It was not understandable since it was written in nourasian, still they had the feeling of something terrible was about to happen. The man read out the letter loud. As they followed each word that came out his mouth, they became more and more restless. "This is a direct order from his majesty. _Gather all your belongings. You are all to leave soon. There will be a ship arriving in a couple of days_.".

Their eyes were literally exploding with shock as they screamed all simultaneously. "WHAAAAAT?". The king must have been a maniac to make them leave. "WHY?". They demanded an answer. This was insane! Why would he make them leave? Did they do something wrong? Before they could receive any answer the man left. Rick was the one that was most furious. "HEY, YOU! COME BACK HERE!", he roared and was about to smack the crap out of the old man.

"WHOA! WHOA! WHOA! RICK! CALM DOWN!", Stan and Koji yelled after him.

"Did you hear that? IMMA WOOP HIS ASS!"

"Quit it, Rick! We can't do anything when we don't even know what this is all about!", Koji scolded him. Stan agreed. It would be totally wrong. They had to go to the bottom of all this. Then something hit all of them! They looked horrified at each other. All of them hurried their way to the hospital. If they were lucky enough, they could reach her before he did. But what they didn't know was that she already knew.

* * *

><p>The next following days showed nothing but her entire body becoming weaker and weaker. She was so emaciated she could barely move her upper body. All that was left of her were her dry skin and obvious bones. Her face had shrunk to the size of a prune. Old and wrinkly. Because of her meager loss of nutritious and vitamins that her body so sorely needed, her health was at a critical stage. The doctors assumed that she might have been suffering from a deep depression. If nothing improved soon, she could risk her life. But there she was. Lying on the hospital bed for days with darkened eyes and blank expressions, never the less piercing tears that tore her apart little by little. Would her suffering never end? Everyday her friends came to visit and plant some encouragement in her, but what was it to be cheerful about? It was so unfair. Making herself leave the only man she really grew affection for would be incredibly bitter. She would never let go. "Please, Eva. You need to eat…", all her friends begged, even Alan. Still, she refused. It didn't take long before she also began coughing up huge amounts of her remaining blood. She was so skinny she looked like a corpse.<p>

* * *

><p>The heartbreaking news had soon reached the chaotic palace. While she was still sickened to death, another person was discharged from the hell of a hospital for the second time. By the time he recovered fully, he stormed towards the throne room immediately. Although he could be punished for his sudden actions, he was determined to share his worries, even if that meant his life. As soon as the king ordered the royal councils to leave, he was allowed to speak. "What is this about my wedding?". Lao stepped done from his throne and made his way down the stairs. He glared amusing at his son. The king had never seen him so passionate about someone, especially a human. But at the same time he felt every disappointed. If he accepted her in their family it would become a disgrace to not only the kingdom, but to the entire nation! He couldn't afford to let something so outrageous happen. On the other hand, the prince was determined to receive some answers. "Please, I beg you, father. Let me take responsibility for her! If not, she will die!"<p>

"Then let her!", Lao replied in a harsh tone. Aikka couldn't believe what he just said. Let her die? How dared he? The prince knew his father was up to something cruel, but he just couldn't figure out what.

"ARE YOU OUT OF YOUR MIND? If you are not intending to do anything then I will!"

"Don't be a fool, Aikka! I will never let you near her again! She is nothing but a grave danger to us!".

"Us? What danger? You know as well as I do that she have done nothing wrong!". It seemed to the king that his only son was ready to sacrifice or rather waste everything precious he had just for a pathetic earthling. This was not a way of a nourasian! Betraying your people was the same as forgetting one's own kind! The king would not rest till he had given her up.

"Have you already forgotten who you are? You are the only heir of this kingdom and now you are willing give it up? Nonsense! Do not provoke me, Aikka. You know very well that if this kingdom falls, she will come tumbling after!"

"YOU HAVE NO RIGHTS TO DO THAT! LEAVE HER AL-"

"ENOUGH! I shall let you go for this one act, but should you do another ridiculous attempt, so help me I will not only send her and her friends back to whence they came from, BUT SHE WILL SUFFER WHATEVER PUNISHMENT I WILL GIVE HER!". He was overwhelmed with shock. The threat was too risky. The prince didn't wish to watch her leave, but he couldn't afford to let her die because of him either. He was left with no choice.

* * *

><p>After struggling for days, she finally managed to recover from her sickness. Maybe not fully recovered, but enough to make her stand back on her feet again. Still, her mental scars had never vanished. Nothing would ever cure them, not even the galaxy's most powerful medicines. Both she and her friends had received the order. She pretended she was okay with it all and acted as if nothing was wrong. But the truth was, they had forgotten each other completely. She thought about it while she packed her bags. It broke her. Inside she was screaming and asking if it was over yet? If she could open her eyes? Because now she knew what it felt like to really cry.<p>

She was lost in the darkness as time kept slipping by, but if she could have just one wish, she wanted him by her side. Eva really missed him, but never the less she really needed him. No one could ever take his place. Inside she was alone and empty, literally torn apart. Soon she would have leave him.

* * *

><p>It was a tough day for everyone, especially her. The poor girl had probably cried her eyes out. There were so much he could do to prevent this from happening, still he didn't. His terrible conscience haunted him and soon became a painful agony. Alan still remembered her sobbing. It smudged his heart to hear how trembling and broken she was. Now he could never forgive him. Some way sooner or later he had to pay. <em>"Just you wait, Aikka…"<em>. He swore that he would never let him hurt her again. This time he really ment it.

* * *

><p>Everything went out of control in his head as he lied on his bed. It was the last night before the wedding. The last night before he would become the new king of Nourasia and a husband. It was nights like this he wished he could spend in peace and quiet without his mind becoming a total chaos. Although he had the opportunity to run away, his body wouldn't let him. Instead he just lied there, slowly waiting for his doom. <em>"Why can't this feeling just fade away?",<em>he asked himself every time he thought of her. Nobody knew. He hid it inside. The prince kept on searching, but he couldn't find the courage to show, to letting her know. He had never felt this way before about someone. There was no one like her, she spoke to his heart. It was a shame they were worlds apart. He was too shy to ask and too proud to lose, but sooner or later he had to choose.

* * *

><p>Their vacation had finally come to an end. Everything was packed up and ready. She could see a long row of bags and other luggage in different shapes and colors down the halls. Her friends came out dressed in black as they headed for their stuffs. Somehow it felt like they were attending a funeral. Just before they were about to leave, she left a long note under the door. "C'mon, little mouse! Let's go.", Rick shouted.<p>

"It's time to go home, isn't it?"

"Yeah… don't worry. Everything will be alright.", he assured her with all his heart. It was nice to have someone like Rick next to her. She could always trust his comforting words. It was time to go.

* * *

><p>She twirled around in the most beautiful gown everyone had ever seen. It was simply an eye catcher! The white layers of the dress were made of feather light chiffon, which sparkled in the light of the blazing sun. Gorgeous floral calico in bright pastel colors adorned the top along with the soft cut out sleeves down her arms. The silky touch of the dress provided luxurious glow against her golden skin. The tiara with the nourasian crest from the Northern kingdom dazzled with her bridal veil made of Chantilly laces. "How do I look?", she asked the maids.<p>

"Gorgeous, your highness.". Marielle blushed at the compliment. She had never considered herself beautiful till she turned around. In the mirror she could finally picture what she had always dreamed of since she was little. To be a beautiful bride. This was exactly what she had dreamed of all her life.

* * *

><p>The prince looked at himself in the mirror. While he buttoned up his sheer white batiste shirt, he kept wishing that this day had never come. But what could he do? He could never turn back now. Even if he could it would be too late. No matter how much he wanted to escape from all this, he just couldn't. "My oh my, how time has passed!", a gentle voice complimented behind him.<p>

Keiran was dressed in beige corduroy trousers and a matching white batik shirt. In proportion to the prince, he beamed with happiness. "Wow. I thought I would never see you in such attire, but I must say you look very gallant today, my friend.". Though he understood the genuine thought of his friend, the whole atmosphere was still an entire nerve wrack. The prince just couldn't accept the fact that he would be committed to someone he didn't even love for the rest of his life within moments now. Keiran could feel the nervousness and depression in the prince's heart and somehow pitted him. He knew how much she meant to him and how deeply hurt both of them would become after this. Before both of them walked out the door Keiran gave him something. "You're hiding it, are you not?".

The day had finally come. She would marry the one that she really loved at last. This was the day she had dreamed of ever since she was just a little girl. Everything around her melted her heart completely. The flowers, the beautiful decorations and of course the amount of guests who were there to witness this one special day. Once she stepped into the aisle a small tear shed from her eye. There he was. Standing beside the priest with Keiran as his best man waiting patiently for her. When the music had finally stopped she could barely breathe. The priest looked at the couple with mixed feelings. At the same time as he wished them all well, he was also concerned on behalf of the prince who looked darkened. And so the ceremony had begun.

* * *

><p>It was time. Time to leave. Just the word pierced her heart. The truth was she would never see him again if she left, but there was no other way. If he choose to be with the princess for the rest of his life then who was she to stop him? But she also realized what it would mean for her. Everything they had together had already died, so what difference would it make if she tried one last time? Though she missed him so much, there was nothing she could do but just let him go. "It's time to go…", Alan said gently as he stroke her back. He was right. This was the end. She looked back at the kingdom one last time. All the good times and the happy memories flashed by quickly in her mind.<p>

"Goodbye, Aikka…", she smiled as the tears fell down her cheeks.

* * *

><p>She looked into his heavenly blue eyes. This was the moment she had been waiting for all her life. The shining golden rings were only a few moments away from sliding onto hers and his as the symbol of their love being bonded to each other forever. "Do you, Marielle Celeste Aitheria, princess of the Northern kingdoms, take Aikka, prince of Nourasia to be your husband, partner in life and one true love?", the priest asked. The princess already knew the answer. She promised she would cherish their union and love him more each day than she did before. Regardless of the obstacles they may face in the future, she would trust and respect him, laugh and cry with him and love him faithfully through good and bad times.<p>

"I do.", she said with her hand on her heart. The only thing left was his answer.

"Do you, Aikka, prince of Nourasia. Take Marielle Celeste Aitheria, princess of the Northern kingdoms as your wife to be and to hold from this day forward, for better and for worse, for richer and poorer, in sickness and in health, to love and to cherish, and until death do you part?", the priest asked once more.

"I…", he was about to say, but stopped all of a sudden. The heavy sigh that came out his mouth made everyone a bit anxious. Could it be that he had forgotten his vows? There was a piercing silence between all of them. The more he hesitated, the more restless everyone became, especially the king. He wasn't ready for this. To be married to someone he didn't even have feelings for. Should he really go through this and risk his own happiness because of his duties? Then something hit him! The prince remembered what Keiran told him just a few moments ago. _"If you let her go then you will never know what your life would have been holding her close to you. But this is not my choice to take, it is yours. If you wish to see her smiling back at you again, then it's up to you."_. Aikka knew what he had to do. _"Love is not a sin, Aikka. Follow your heart.". _The prince felt his father's eyes burning with fury staring at his back.

"I…", he began again. This time he said it loud and proud so everyone could hear it. "I DON'T.". An immense gasps stroke the entire audience with shock! Some fainted, others began crying of confusion. He was sure that his father was probably pissed off by now. "AIKKAAAAA! NO!", Marielle screamed as she watched him run out the doors for good. It was now or never.

* * *

><p><strong>AN:  
>Didn't see that coming, did you? Hehe… Alright enough with the jokes already! <strong>_**As you all may know the competition is officially over.**_** Just wanted to say thank you so much to all of you who entered! It's great to see that so many of you were actually eager and enthusiastic! Let's give everyone a round of applause! Even though I wished I could use all of the fantastic names that you came up with, we all know there can only be one winner. As I promised, I will announce the winner at a upcoming art of mine at "** **" and in the next Author's note. So look forward to it guys! Let me know what you thought of this chapter! Dying to know :D  
><strong>

**PS: If you want to check out Marielle's wedding dress you'll find it at my Deviant page! **


	24. Chapter 24: Confession of a lover

**A/N:  
><strong>  
><strong>Hi, everyone! IM SO SORRY I DIDN'T UPDATE EARLIER! The final chapter! This chapter was inspired by Aaron Zigman's magnificent piece of music <em>"on the lake",<em> the soundtrack from _the noteboo_k. If you really want to capture the perfect scene, you should play this while you read the part where _Eva's leaving. _Keep on reading till the end! Got a BIG BIG BIG SURPRISE for you guys! ;)**

**CHAPTER 24**

* * *

><p>It was full chaos the moment the prince scurried out the doors of his own wedding. The entire nation was overwhelmed with shock! They had never seen such scandalous actions in all their lives. Never had a young nourasian expressed such courageousness to defy the great laws of Nouraisa! Everything, all his efforts were in vain. Wasted by the sight of his own son sacrificing it all because of her. A simple pathetic human. The guards took the hint and reacted immediately. Nori feared that this might be the end of it all. Watching her son suffer a death because of his tracery against his own kind was not an alternative. She begged him not committing such stupidity even though she knew the rules. "Please, Lao. Don't do this!".<p>

"Your majesty. What are your orders?", the captain of the guards asked nervously.

* * *

><p>As stupid as it sounded, he really wished he could control the time, but he knew it was impossible. He looked out the window with tears in his eyes. Now that he finally found his one true love, destiny just didn't want them together by separating them forever leaving his love behind without a single clue that he would never return. "Hurry up, Stan!", he heard the others shout from his door. Just before he closed the door he came across her brother. "Please let her know that I'm leaving. Promise me that.", he told him. Keiran watched with a sad gleam in his eyes as his sister's lover slowly walked away. He knew exactly what this would lead to.<p>

* * *

><p><strong><br>**G'dar screeched at his call. Keiran was right. Seeing her smile everyday was all he ever wished for. However, with all the obstacles they faced and the constant pressure not from only the councils, but his father too, how was he ever to confess his affection for her? His feelings were sealed under those burdens all these years, but now they had broken free. Just the thought of his most cherished friendship perishing into nothing and not knowing what could have been was an unforgivable crime in his heart. All the memories would disappear. Everything they did together, back at the racing days, and everything they used to be. It was now or never.

* * *

><p>Just as he was about to go back to the wedding suddenly something stopped him! Just the sight of her tears soaking her elegant curls made him feel rotten inside. "Why…?", she said with a shaky voice. It was only right what he did, although it seemed bitterly unfair. Yuna kept hassling for an answer. The more she sobbed, the more his heart wanted to give in. "WHY DIDN'T YOU STOP HIM?!".<p>

"I WOULD LOSE EVERYTHING!", he yelled all of a sudden!

"Lose? Lose what?! Your position in the court? Your loyalty to the king? YOUR NOBELITY?!". Now he couldn't answer. What she said was unbelievable because it was true. "How could you be so selfish! HAVE YOU EVER ONCE THOUGH ABOUT OTHERS INTERESTS THAN YOUR OWN?! Don't you care for me too…?". The harm was done.

* * *

><p>A cold breeze brushed her skin. The approaching sound of the hovercraft pierced her heart. Freezing drops of sweat ran down her face as she watched her friends tossing in their luggage into the flying machine. "Are you coming?, Alan asked while pointing at the ship. It was time.<p>

She looked back at the kingdom one last time. Everything, all around her were things that she would miss so deeply. The blue sakura trees that blossomed gracefully, the tranquil meadows, the gorgeous lake of Luna and most of all, the beautiful palace where she once lived. All the memories of them flashed by. Both the good ones and the bad ones. She thought he would remember and all her mistakes would be forgiven, that everything would return back to what they it used to be. Who was she to believe that he had feelings for her? They were just lies. Painful lies. There were no other options left. If she chose to stay, she would only be in his way. Bittersweet memories were all she was taking with her. After all, he didn't need her. She hoped life would treat him kind and that he had all he had dreamed of. But above all this, she wished him love.

"Goodbye, Aikka…", she smiled as her last tears fell.

She turned around to the sound of someone screaming out her name. "DON'T LEAVE!". Her name kept echoing again and again. His voice, soft and gentle. That was all she heard before she was pulled into his arms. Eva began to slowly lid her eyes. "I love you, Eva.". Aikka placed his lips upon hers! His tongue perturbed her lips, asking for passage. She opened and finally let him through. Their eyes closed as he deepened the kiss. The kiss that she had been longing for so long. Tears rushed down her blushing cheeks. He remembered. For a moment she buried herself on his chest, feeling his warm and careful arms embracing her again. All the pain that she had suffered was slowly fading away just by the touch of his tender skin. She could feel everything inside her pounding by the sound of his heart beating against hers. Once more he kissed her divinely.

Her eyes widen in astonishment. A sheer shade of pink burned her cheeks. "Marry me…", he whispered softly in her ear. For a moment her entire body was frozen. All feelings burst out of her like bubbles. "LOOK OUT!", her friends shouted behind them! It was too late. Her eyes shut down as she fell in his arms. Blood ran down her back. The wooden arrow had drilled deeply through her brutally separating her muscles and veins. He could feel the very tip on his stomach. "Eva?". The prince shook her lifeless body. "No, please. Don't do this… EVAAAAAA!".

* * *

><p>There was no hiding it. The maids followed excitedly as her majesty rushed her way to the throne room. They could hear her feet stomping the floor to pieces. Under the gorgeous layers of garments, the queen had the weight of an elephant when she was angry. Like a furious lion she roared her way through the halls. She barged the doors open wide. Everyone at the council startled at her. "Leave, now.", she demanded. But they didn't move. They were obviously under his command. Cold sweat ran down the king's neck. "RIGHT NOW!", she shouted on top of her lungs! Their jelly-like legs ran out the doors in fright at once leaving the queen glaring ugly at her husband. "You malicious monster! How could you do this!?", all the maids, councils, guards and everyone else heard outside the doors. The queen walked up the stairs to face his not so tough expression now. He was their son! Not an animal you could abuse like a slave! She was aware of the fact that she was defending something that would shock the whole kingdom, but the prince had his rights too! The right to love whoever he desired. "How could you do this to him! You know how much she means to him!".<p>

"The wedding was the most important part of our future! Our kingdom depended on it! Without an alliance, how will we manage to defend ourselves if future adversaries attack us?!". The queen had never thought of the situation that way before. Maybe she was making a mistake. Something hit her! "What if we make an alliance with the humans?", it burst out of her.

The king's eyes widen. "ABSOLUTLEY NOT!". Lao knew that humans were weaker than nourasians and they wouldn't stand a chance against the crogs or other enemies in an intergalactic war. "Why not? They can offer twice as much protection as we can by using their technology!". Somehow everything made sense now, but would the king agree to it?

* * *

><p>Finally she opened her eyes. It was supposed to be her last time, but here she was. Back again, lying on the bed in the hospital. The smell of her own blood made her wanting to vomit. Once again she breathed heavily through a machine. The only thing that made everything worth a while was the sight of him sleeping peacefully on her lap. He must have been worried to death. "Aikka…", she managed to whisper through the foggy mask. He woke up immediately and held her hand tightly as if he never wanted to let go. Just seeing her face was enough to relax everything inside him. Then she suddenly uttered something. Even though she was weak, she knew the answer inside her.<p>

"Yes.", she said with a voice like an angel.

"Yes to what?"

"I'll marry you…". Aikka couldn't believe what she just said. He leaned in closer and smiled as he kissed her forehead. "Are you sure?". She nodded. Eva had always been thinking that he was the only one. Deep inside there was no other. Maybe she didn't have the best feautures or any of the qualities that a queen should have, but none of them mattered to him. As long as she loved him. Still, the prince had his doubts. After everything they faced together and all the pain he put her through, how could she ever want to marry a guy like him? Somehow Eva knew that their love would find a way. Although he felt pathetic, Eva felt the same way as well. Together she believed that they would become stronger. Now he realized that love was never wrong and so it never dies. A perfect world shone in her eyes. If only his father could feel it too, the happiness he felt with her.

"Will you always be with me?"

"Yes, no matter when and no matter how long.". Suddenly Aikka squeezed her in his arms. "I love you…", he whispered softly.

"I love you too."

It was over. His rival won. Friend zone was like a mafia, you'd never get out. His decision to win her heart led him to nothing but destruction. For the first time in his whole life, he actually cried. After running and running he broke down outside some sort of temple. Soon his entire face was covered in dripping sweat and painful tears in the drizzling cold rain. "Where does it hurt the most?", a voice suddenly asked. An old man stood beside him combing his curly beard. Without even thinking about it Alan opened up. The old man listened closely to his words. After that everything became silent for a while. It was such a sensitive spot. He rubbed his dreary eyes. "What would you do if you were me?".

"What would you do if you saw a bird with injuries still fighting its way out from its cage?"

"Set it free?". Then it slapped him in the face. He knew exactly what he was trying to say. Even if it was the only right thing left, it was still too hard to force himself. He loved her just as much as the prince. When he was gone, he was the one who stood by her side. Always protecting her and being the shoulder she could cry on. Just giving up now killed him. But what could he do? One last tear fell from his eye as he whispered her name painfully. If she only knew.

* * *

><p>"What if he doesn't approve?", she asked looking like a friady cat.<p>

"Then we'll tell him that we fear neither him nor his guards, nor his armies. If he wants to shake his little fist at us, we're ready to give him such a bite he'll wish he held his hands in his pockets!", Aikka assured her. Then they stepped in facing what would become either life or death. She knew just what to do the moment she heard them. The princess quickly called a carriage to take her far away to place where people like her lived in the shadows of others. She would make them regret so deeply for what they did to her. Soon she arrived outside a dark cave where not even the smallest gleam of light seeped through. A man in a black cape covering his creepy scars appeared from the darkness. "What is that you seek, my lady?". After a while he came out with something that not even the king knew of. The princess grinned maliciously. This was it.

* * *

><p>Everyone was moping and their jaws were dropping when they heard about the new engagement. Furthermore, the thing that shocked them the most was the upcoming wedding! In a few days the prince would marry again and not just to someone, but a human! Some accepted Eva as if she already was part of the people because of her humble personality, others could still not believe that the laws had been broken for the very first time. The king who had stuck to the rules passed onto him from generation to generation had suddenly changed! Their closest friends rejoiced with happiness when they heard the joyful news. They celebrated, ate and laughed wishing the happy couple all well. Everything felt just like a dream to Eva, but a nightmare not only to the princess, but to a very close friend of her. Soon everything was settled for the wedding. The more he thought about it, the more he suffered, but because it meant so much to her, he kept quiet. Eva walked around the palace the day before admiring all the gorgeous decorations in the garden. For once, she took a liking to frills and laces. Just the thought of that she would marry a prince kinda scared her, but a same time she felt an inner happiness. She turned around to a soft voice behind her, but what she saw was not as delicate for her eyes as it was for her ears. "You must be overjoyed…". For a minute she didn't know what or how to answer. Hearing it coming from her, the princess herself was very unusual, but at the same time a bit heartwarming. "This is you last day as a free woman… don't you wish to celebrate it?", she purred like an innocent cat. Since she seemed harmless, Eva came along still doubting that this would lead to something good.<p>

The princess took her upstairs to a silent room where the massive crowd couldn't follow them. She poured a cup of tea for her as a symbol to a pact of peace between them. In that very moment Eva felt comfortable and somehow a bit trust grew inside her. "Thank you for joining me for tea. It has been a pleasure to know you a bit better.", Marielle grinned while shaking hands with her.

* * *

><p>"Hey… I heard about you and your brother.", he said casually as he sat down on the wooden bench. Her expression was like a pissed off volcano that could explode any minute. "You know… from a guy's point of view, I think he just wanted the best for you."<p>

"He was only thinking of himself, Stan!"

"Not really. His position could save your lives. Think about it, who of you two have the biggest responsibility? It's Keiran right? And after your parents die, who of you would most likely get paid the most?". Now that she realized how wrong she was, she just had to find him.

* * *

><p>Night had finally settled in Nourasia. The people saved their excitement for the next day. Everyone couldn't wait. The whole thing was very nerve wracking for Eva. She could feel her whole body shaking as if it was an earthquake below her stomach. He was about to go to sleep when he noticed someone familiar bouncing around in the halls with a bubbly smile on her face. Seeing her that happy made him a little bitter inside. Just the feeling of that someone could make her happier than him was devastating. Now that the wedding was just hours away too really broke him.<p>

"You can't marry him.", he told her firmly causing her to turn around with widen eyes. She startled at him as confusion raged inside her. He had never looked so serious before. Then she asked him what he meant.

"I can't let you go."

"No, Alan. Stop."

"You know that I love you!"

"Please…"

"Don't marry him! I know you better than anyone else and you know that I love you more than he ever wi-"

"STOP!", she yelled as she slapped him! It was enough. She couldn't stand there hearing him slander someone she loved. He had no rights to claim her as his like a trophy! Forcing her to love him was just horrible. What was worse, he was her best friend! Suddenly he pulled her close to him! Their lips were just inches apart! Eva tried to break free, but his grip became tighter and tighter. "ALAN, NO!", she yelped as she began crying. Once he heard her shriek, he let go. "Don't even bother coming to the wedding tomorrow…". That was all she said before she left.

* * *

><p>The day that everyone had been waiting for had finally come at last. The whole kingdom was filled with joy. Little by little a whole crowd stormed into the palace filling up the entire garden where the magnificent wedding was held. The decorations were breathtaking as if it was taken out from a fairytale. The seats were made of the finest chenille in the whole galaxy with wide satin ribbons attached to the back of each chair. All their best friend sat down closest to the huge arch decorated with unique flowers in all the rainbows colors. Today they would witness a special day. Cold sweat ran down her back. She had never seen that many people in her entire life. This was really not the time to screw up. "Come in!", she shouted when she heard a knock on the door. In came the queen carrying something sparkly in her hands. Nori put the tiara with the crest of Nourasia on top of her bridal veil made of eternal long gorgeous Chantilly lace. A little tear popped out the corner of her eye. "There… now you look like a real princess.", she said while wiping away her tears. Eva startled at herself the moment she looked into the mirror. She twirled around in her beautiful deep backed dress in pearly white with a silky touch of chiffon that only the best tailors in the kingdom could make. This was definitely a day she would never forget. Suddenly she heard someone knock the door again, this time a little louder than the queen's. It was a bit odd since she wasn't expecting anyone. "Are you ready?", she heard a familiar voice ask.<p>

Eva ran up to him and hugged him tightly. Oh, how much she missed her father's embrace! "You came!", she said euphoric.

"Of course! Wouldn't miss it for the world.". He put a hand over his mouth when they let go. Nothing was more touching than seeing your daughter in a wedding dress. Time had passed far too fast. It was only yesterday when she walked in her diaper and now she was a fully grown woman. "You look beautiful.". Then they heard the music stop. It was time. They walked arm in arm through the halls and down to the garden. Before they'd step out to the aisle Eva began breathing very heavy, but not because she was nervous. "Eva… can you promise me one thing?", her dad asked.

"Yeah sure. What?"

"Give me a lot of cute grandchildren!", he chuckled. Her whole face went red. "Daaaad…", she frowned like she always did. It was a little embarrassing, yet at the same time sweet. After that everything became silent. Eva could feel her whole body pulling itself together. This was really it. The doors opened up to what looked like Alice in wonderland. Everything was perfect. She could feel all eyes on her as she walked down the aisle covered in soft ombré rose petals. Right there, in front of her was all she ever wanted. Seeing him in his traditional white suit with the nourasian crest made him look like the perfect prince. She couldn't believe that just in a few minutes she would be married to a prince from a mighty kingdom. Their eyes met once again. Eva blushed more than ever as she stood under the arch with him. This was the moment she had been waiting for so long since the day they were separated from each other at Oban. The priest began speaking and soon it was time to exchange vows. She could feel her entire body shaking as if it was an earthquake underneath her. It was such a special moment, screwing it up would mess up her whole life! Suddenly Aikka held her hand gently. She looked up facing his sweet smile and loving eyes. "Eva, as I stand here before you, I see all of the things I fell in love with.", he said softly making her more nervous than ever.

Her heart was beating so loudly in her ears, she found herself so lost for the right words to say. "This ring in my hand, it will make me remember how complete you make my life.". Just to hear those words made her feel as if she was in heaven already. "It makes me remember how blessed I really am, how I can't ever thank the Lord above enough, for allowing you into my life.". Now he pulled up the beautiful ring in exclusive nourasian gold with a small crystal in red and blue in the center and slowly slid it through her finger. "I give you this ring, my heart, my soul. I give you everything I am today as I stand before you.". Then he promised to always be by her side as she promised him. "With this ring, let it be known, that over every other person in the world I could be with, I chose you. I'm promising to be here for you all eternity, 'til death do us part. I love you". He pulled up the veil and kissed her divinely. Now she was officially his. The whole kingdom clapped with joy and tossed flower petals over them as they walked down the aisle. Everywhere they went the people congratulated them. She felt like the luckiest girl in the world. By the time everything had calmed down and she could loosen her corset he came forward and congratulated her too, although he knew that she still might be angry at him.

"Hey… I'm sorry for what I did-", he apologized. Without holding more grudge, she actually hugged him as if he was forgiven already. After that he walked back away from the garden where he could have a moment alone. He could hear three little pigs behind him singing his name. "Good job, Alan. You did the right thing.", Rick and the others said trying to comfort him. The boys pitted him, but at the same time they were so proud of him. He would rather see her smile than brining her to tears. Now he finally understood the meaning of letting someone you love go.

* * *

><p>Month after month passed by. Once again wonderful news was presented to the entire kingdom. The new queen was expecting! Alan stood by their majesties side always supporting both, but time was running away from him too. It was time to prioritize himself now. He couldn't stay on the planet forever. So he began setting plans. As soon as the baby was born, he would leave. But for now he stood by her side waiting patiently every day. There was also another who waited. Alan noticed the disgusting glares the princess gave her, but he couldn't find them as threats.<p>

Then the day she promised her dad came at last. It was not exactly what she thought it would be. Everything around them stopped, as if the things running the kingdom were paralyzed from an illness. Eva developed a fever that seemed to never go down. At the same time, she went into labor. This is what Aikka feared the most. It was two weeks earlier than they expected. Both Alan and Aikka tried to comfort her as she kept pressing their hands harder and harder. She was breathing heavily as if she was losing her breath. Coughing up amounts of blood, but only that. Something green and unusual was making its way up her throat too. Sweat streamed down her forehead. Hearing her shrieking while pushing was unbearable. Again and again in between the pushes, she desperately attempted to assure them she was fine, but deep inside she was dying. Everyone around them tried their best. However her fever still wouldn't disappear. Aikka supported her as much as he could. Eva lost consciousness over and over. Afterwards, awakening to pain. It was such a cruel scene, he almost covered his eyes. Hour by hour past by. It seemed the pain would never end. Even he felt he'd like to lose consciousness. Maybe his mind wouldn't take it anymore. Then he heard the sound of a scream of a child. The baby was given to his arms. Her eyes were closed. Not responding to his calls. "What should we call her?", he asked. With a weak voice she opened her lids.

"Maya Serenity.". The girl had her mother's raven black hair and her father's sky blue eyes. "I'm the first to hold her!".

"Yes… she's cute.", she KLARTE to utter. Her vision was beginning to fail. "Please let me rest… for a little bit…".  
>Not hearing her talk, look at him or anything made him very restless. Aikka lift her hand, but it dropped to the ground. He tried to make her touch Maya's cheek, but it wouldn't budge. Her entire body was cold as ice. Aikka "What is that coming out of her mouth?", Alan asked worried as green foam bubbled its way out her lips. Once he smelled it he knew exactly what it was. He called desperately for help again and again, still no one came. By the time someone finally arrived, it seemed too late. After doing amounts of antidote that took an eternity to heal her, the doctors around her declared her gone.<p>

"You said you would always be with me, didn't you? You said we'd always be together. You promised me many times, didn't you? EVAAAA!", he cried while holding her close to him. She was dead. After crying and crying forever Alan, who also felt deep pain in his heart, suggested they'd leave. But Aikka refused to let go of her hand. He had really lost everything. Then. All of a sudden they heard something. She whispered Maya's name weakly. Both ran over immediately handing the baby to her. "She's beautiful, isn't she?", Eva smiled. "Indeed. Just like her mother.", both of them said. From that day on the princess was exposed and thrown in to prison and the old king and queen could finally enjoy life without more duties to take care of. Everyone continued living normally, even Alan, but he knew that the happiness would come to end eventually. So by the time Maya became six months, he finally told them his plans. The king of course let him have his wish, but Eva was the one that didn't take it that easily. Hearing him want to leave shocked her. He, who was the one who always was there for her would no longer be by her side. But if that was what he wanted, then she would not stand in his way.

* * *

><p>So the day was here at last. Time went by far too fast for both of them making one very sad and the other overjoyed. She really wished he could stay. After he finished packing up, two carriages with all their other friends inside one of them, stood outside waiting for him. Inside the other, were their majesties along with little Maya. There they were now, everything was about to change. It was time to face tomorrow and say goodbye to yesterday. Eva looked out the window of the carriage. She looked at the beautiful palace where she would spend the rest of her life. Although it brought a big smile upon her face, at the same time it ached in her heart. "Are you alright?", Aikka asked as he lied his hand on her shoulder to pull her closer to him. Just to hear his gentle voice snapped her back to reality. They had each other to lean on for the road ahead. In the other carriage there was one guy who could explode of happiness. Rick, Koji, Stan and Don looked confused at him. <em>"How could this guy be all happy go lucky in this situation?",<em>they thought. He was so excited he could barely even catch his breath. His annoying mother and precious videogames, finally he would come home to them. They stepped out to the cold breeze as they saw the hovercraft rising up from the horizon. While the others bid their farewell to each other, Eva walked up to Alan. "Thanks for everything, Alan.". That was all she could say before he smiled and slowly began walking away. She watched devastated as all her loved ones picked up their bags and made their way to the ship. Without even thinking about it she ran after him! Eva begged him to stay, even though she knew he had to leave.

"Look behind you. Your family needs you. Don't cry. It's time to show the world we've got something to say.". He was right. No matter what their friendship would never fade away. "I know I'll miss you, but we'll meet again someday. We'll never fade away.". It was time to move on, let go and hold on to tomorrow. They'd always got the memories. For some it really meant goodbye, but for others it was just a temporary see you later.

It was time to find out who they were going to be. A chapter was ending, but the story had only just begun. A page was turning for everyone. This happy ending was the start of all their dreams. For Eva, Aikka, Alan and the rest.

* * *

><p><strong>AN:**

**The end! Haha, I know that some of you didn't want the story to end, but sooner or later it has to! ****Alright. It's time to announce the winner of the contest! Just want to say thank you so much for all your awesome entries! I loved all your fantastic ideas and it really meant a lot to me that you guys actually entered :') Although I wished I could use them all, we all know there can only be one winner. The winner is… **_**NEOKAKUYA! **_**Congratulations! As you read I chose the name "Serenity" for their daughter's middle name. The reason why I loved it so much is because it associates with peacefulness, calmness and tranquility. I thought that the name would remind E&A of their long way of finally find each other. The uniqueness of the name suited their daughter perfectly because she's different and very special to her parents!**

**I want to thank all of you who read my story and left so many lovely reviews! If it weren't for you guys I wouldn't have continued this story till the end, but because you gave me so much encouragement I really wanted to give something just as amazing back!**

**Maybe I'll write more fanficts in the future, what do you say guys? ;) SO STAY TUNED!**

**PS: I've published a drawing on Deviantart/theasib where you can see what Maya looks like!**


End file.
